JosOgrafi

The 'Ografi' of Jos Duncan. Culture, film, stories and everything in between.

[josduncan]

3 Things Non-Catholics Can Think About While Preparing for the Pope’s Visit to Philadelphia

As a non-Catholic and current resident of Philadelphia, the Pope’s visit has seemed nothing short of an utter inconvenience. Thoughts of street crowding, transportation halts, business closings, and high Uber rates led me to planning a mini-vacation during the Pope’s stay. Even with a plan to escape the city, I couldn’t get away from conversations about the politics surrounding the World Meeting of Families’ first gathering in the United States. My contemplation of a few key things has lead seeking more information and may even have me stick around to see how this whole thing plays out.

Here are 3 things I’m thinking about...

1 - Family. The World Meeting of Families focuses on the family as an institution. While I don’t necessarily share the values of the Catholic Church, I like the idea of thinking through and articulating a set of values that define family. It’s so easy to take “family” for granted and to like or dislike the groups of people we’re born into. What if the family had a playbook, roles, positions, and responsibilities to support each other? What if there was a written process for communicating and mediating family disputes and solving problems? Should we non-Catholics be taking our families more seriously?

2- Organizing. With representatives from over 100 countries in Philadelphia during the Papal visit, there had to have been some very skilled organizers involved. If I wanted to organize something that involved over 100 countries, where would I start and what issues, ideas or themes would be worthy of such an effort? Okay. That’s huge. But if we wanted to organize anything, even locally, could we use the methods employed for this visit to bring people together? What groups and institutions are we aligned with? Which email lists can be combined? What specific work are we doing that might deem itself worthy of a commitment to organize people around it?

3- Global Mindset. Local residents will have cultures, languages and issues from around the world in arms reach. How will this add to or deflect away from the current issues related to police brutality in the African American community? How will having access to a global base of stories and ideologies shift things? While the USA is often looked at as a leader, we all know there are some problems here. How are these problems perceived internationally? Will having opportunities to interact with those perspectives contribute to progress at all?

So, we’ll see how this whole thing goes down. I’m anticipating another blog post, post-Pope.

Jos Duncan

[josduncan]

Sundance Screenwriting Intensive In Philly

(This post was featured on Sundance’s Blog in 2014 shortly after the intensive.)

The Sundance Screenwriting Intensive in Philadelphia was a soul-opening experience that left me feeling as if I had taken trail-runs through my fears, danced on kitchen tables and inhaled the stinky things in my life, with the characters in my script. We wrote for 9 hours. Joan Tewkesbury led us in triggering memories of people, places and sensory experiences that had been long forgotten - buried beneath refreshed perspectives, the need to leave old hurts behind and pressures in the here and now to write a good script. There was no time to fail, only to write. No caveats or woes, “just read what you’ve written”, was Joan’s firmly expressed rule.

The 12 of us, full of wit and charm and stories carved them into handwritten pages. We got to know each other through our words and looked forward to the humor, quirk, grit and melodic tones we each wrote and read with. Like ‘spilled milk’ that shouldn’t be cried over, at times it was just messy and emotional. At other times, it was silly, adventurous and completely ridiculous.

In the workshop, I became friends with my character. Not only did I know her, but she knew me. I exposed her to the reasons I created her and the world she’d live in. We had gotten to know each other so well that the last writing exercise was more like having a conversation with my characters, on their front porches during a rain storm. I was breathing with them. The days’ writing synchronized our heartbeats.

At the reception, people asked, “how was the workshop, what did you do”? I couldn’t exactly explain it. It was quick and intense and life changing like some kind of baptism where you’re thrown into a pool of water and you just come out… different. In my script, there’s a line where my 12-year old character’s mother says to her, “This is your summer… The summer when you feel yourself grow six inches and your dreams get bigger and your underarms start stinking like a grown man’s”.  That pretty much describes what happened to me as a writer that day. I grew in a way that was awkward, uncomfortable and lovely.

I was affirmed and headed in the right direction. I had new pathways to continue my work, new ways of finding solutions to my stumble blocks and 11 other colleagues to share it with.

by Jos Duncan

[josduncan]

Caitlyn and Terri.....

Call me Caitlyn! Vanity fair cover. He a she. Celebrated and tormented. Pretty and privileged. Break the internet.

Where were you? Terri was there. I was 10. She my hairdresser. With big hands. A wide head. Plump red lips. A square booty. A messy wig. Tissue stuffed bra. Muscular and black. In her chair. We’d become beauties. Hot combs, curlers. Finger waves, gel.  Saturdays before church. Proms and graduations. Terri’s kitchen love. On 15th street. “She a faggot.” No cool language. No refined words. Or academic vocabulary. We loved her. She was us.

Never asked her. For another name. A reason why. Her past-life story. Dark secrets, fears. Mother, father, siblings? Why she fought. Like a man. Sometimes bloody wounds. Showed her journey. Walking dark nights. Black and different. Sweet and loud. Doing some hair. Like nobody’s business.

Caitlyn is buzzing.

I, remember Terri.

By Jos Duncan

[josduncan]

Jill was a great interviewer. She really had all the details on the work @griot_works has done over the years! Thanks to @onpoint24_7 for PR. #GriotWorksFuture #3DaysLeft #DonateToday #storytellers #media #support https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/griotworks-future-campaign

[josduncan]

Getting ready to tell #GriotWorks story on #ComcastNewsmakers. #MUA #TanyaRobinson #GriotWorksFuture #3DaysLeft #DonateToday @griot_works https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/griotworks-future-campaign

[josduncan]

@griot_works is on tv! Honestly, I got a little emotional watching the special. I have never sat in comfort and watched a collection of our programs and the overall work we're producing. The less than hour long special features the work of dozens of storytellers, filmmakers, artists and cultural workers. Truly a collective work. Thank you @phillyCAM for featuring our work throughout Black History month. If you missed it tonight, catch it next Saturday at 8am or 7pm.

[josduncan]

Cosby: Maybe He's A Saint and A Beast... But Culture Is Problematic

I believe Bill did it. All of it. And I think he thought he was doing "the usual.” Probably something he learned from an old friend, another respected celebrity in the 1950's, when it was assumed that sex was a standard exchange for entry into the entertainment industry, or a "good time" with entertainers. Bill is no different from R. Kelly, actually. Power-tripping, dark-sided men with issues that have taken advantage of a culture which sexualizes and objectifies women and girls.

The women who knew they had been raped kept silent. They probably believed they would never be heard. They were women. The system mutes such claims of women whose faces they don't recognize. They may have told a person or two who asked them questions that led them to feeling inadequate. Unable to make "a thing" of it. So they kept quiet. Until now, when feminists have paved a way for women to feel powerful. To fight back. To be heard.

I believe Bill did it. All of it. And I believe one day, it hit him that he was doing something terribly wrong. So he tried to become a hero, a beloved father, a giver, a man who could polish the tarnish in his mirror's reflection. Maybe he went to a church alter and had a preacher lay hands on his head believing that he'd be forgiven for his sins. Deemed himself a saint - and hoped his dirty deeds would dwindle away with rolodexes, cassette tapes and the racism he came through. But all of it still exists. You can still find an old cassette tape of Bill doing comedy somewhere at a vintage record store, rolodexes are for sale on Amazon and racism, well...

Jos Duncan

[josduncan]

The Duality of Black Activism in Wake of Social Trauma

Emotional, physical and psychological traumas produce reactions in human beings. There is shock, denial, disbelief, anger, confusion and a feeling of being disconnected from everything. Social trauma, particularly the ones that involve a consistent disregard of the justice system when Black lives are taken, causes similar effects. Social media becomes a place to vent and find solace by connecting with a global community of people who share sentiments and pain. After such traumas, reactions provoke a duality of activism: reminders of injustice/death and tactics for empowerment/life.

Activists who lean towards reminding the world of injustice, amplify painful and traumatic stories by posting articles, videos of the incidents,  perceptions of the root causes of injustice and related historical incidents. These posts strike emotional chords and move masses of people towards immediate action - usually, a march, a staged reenactment, collecting other stories of trauma or in some cases rioting. There is a time for protest. Most times protest is the sole way to keep the media covering the disapproval of the injustice and keep the media coverage alive.

Alternatively, there are those activists who hold peace rallies, panel discussions, suggest hugging police offers and aim to celebrate Black life by amplifying success stories, historical accomplishments and strategically design programs which take time to execute.

As with all forms of trauma, there is a point where comfort is found in  reliving incidents and being in the presence of those with shared experiences. Having a community to mourn with is a basic human need. But amplifying painful experiences, keeps individuals and communities in a state of trauma. So while both approaches to activism are valid, it's important to maintain a sense of clarity in what we're contributing to.

Are we so concerned with seizing the moment of emotion, anger and hype that we participate in amplifying death, protests, marches until we burn ourselves out, only to then step away from it all? Or are we strategically supporting events and activities that fuel us with a sense of purpose and direction, that we might commit to leading, engaging with and designing programs which restore and rebuild us?  

If we want to be functional and purposeful in our quest for justice, distinguishing the dualities we are working in helps maintain balance throughout our activism. Yes, make noise, express disappointment, stand in solidarity but also commit to the long term work of supporting programs which consistently offer opportunities to build and tools for progress. I would also recommend participating in a program which celebrates Black life and culture - African dance, drumming, African storytelling, entrepreneurship, tech programs, etc. These types of programs restore cultural identities and though it may not seem like "activism", they work to establish core community values and fuel movements.

At the end of the day, if leaders are not able to think coherently and lead strategically due to being overwhelmed with emotion and pain, we are of no use to anyone, not even ourselves.

Jos Duncan

[josduncan]

[communityfutureslab]

@Griot_Works Presents Cultural Competency Course 3: Storytelling, Science Fiction, Technology, and Time Travel | workshop will be led by Rasheedah Phillips of afrofuturistaffair at CultureWorks Greater Philadelphia on Saturday, December 14, 2014

[josduncan]

Last night, I had an amazing conversation with some lawyer-artist friends who were interested in the various roles of filmmaking. With films being such a huge part of mainstream media, it's always fun demystifying what goes on behind the scenes. Ava Duvernay, the director of the upcoming film Selma and founder of the African American Film Festival Releasing Movement [AFFRM], has put out a series of recorded phone conversations with directors called the CALL-IN. The calls reveal intimate details about the filmmaking process of making each film to include challenges, obstacles, inspirations and why they cast (or didn't) cast actors in the roles... and sometimes, it gets a bit juicy.

For the past 10 years or so, I've followed Gina Prince-Bythewood's work. As the writer and director of Love and Basketball and the Secret Life of Bees, I've admired her work from afar. The CALL-IN provided a very up close and personal listening session that was pretty inspiring. For example, I was floored when I learned, like me, she doesn't really like the editing part of making films (!!!)

Today, another film she's written and directed, Beyond the Lights, opens in theaters! I'd definitely recommend listening to AFFRM's CALL-IN before or after checking it out.

Here's the link:

https://soundcloud.com/affrm/the-call-in-with-gina-prince-bythewood

See you at the movie!

Jos Duncan

[josduncan]

3 Problems with Narcissistic Artists

If you know an artist, you've probably experienced being in the presence of someone who is extremely passionate about their work, because they feel it adds value to the world, changes lives or is bridging a necessary gap to heal the social ills of the world. After spending time with the artist, you may notice they come off as a bit self centered. They have more to say in conversations. Their current project is occupying their thoughts. You learn of their deadlines, new ideas and they expect you to become a choir member singing to their brilliance.

Yes, you've encountered the narcissistic artist.

Here are 3 problems with them:

1 - The first problem is that artists have been trained to sell their art to sustain themselves and this is annoying to friends and family who could care less. Full time artist make their livings from their art and in order to do that, they constantly pitch their ideas to funders, audiences, art houses, galleries and agents in order to book their next gig or opportunity. If they don't book that gig or opportunity, they don't eat, pay rent, go shopping, they can't hang out with friends or enjoy the luxuries of vacation time like their non-artists friends who work full time jobs. So they live their lives in a state of thinking about their identity, their ideas, how they will express them and for many, this is a big problem.

2- Artists, especially performing artists, are trained to be "on". This means the artist will put on a full show about themselves when under pressure, nervous, anxious or simply in a quiet room when no one else knows what to say. They've experienced being on stages, galvanizing the attention of hundreds or thousands and know how to draw energy to themselves at dinners, baby showers and holiday gatherings. Your narcissistic artist friend may seem awesome to people who don't know them but to those who do, it is a wonder how they find themselves as the center of attention in every situation and this can be annoying.

3- Artists constantly battle doubt and depression and have to win daily, hourly, each time a job ends, etc. in order to believe that their art is a worthy exchange for living a happy and prosperous life. By the time the artist is social, (keeping in mind that many of them are secretly introverts) they've won numerous internal battles with themselves. So being around them is often like being around a boxer just after they've won or lost a fight. They're full of winning energy or maybe thinking of a strategy to win next time. Your narcissistic artist friend is actually a little crazy but they would never share these inner battles with you because then you wouldn't think their life as an artist was cool.

There are of course cases where the artist is simply a narcissist because they're just wrapped into themselves and love the sound of their own voices. If you care to be friends with an artist who tends to come off as narcissistic, consider the typical problems first and be straight up with them if you need them to listen to you more or if you're not interested in their next project. Once your artist friend knows you know their secrets, they'll likely love you more for allowing them to just relax and be human in your presence.

Post by Jos Duncan, (Artist)

[josduncan]

Orange, brown and cranberry colored leaves tell a story. Change is inevitable. The sun, is still magnificent. Scene: morning meditation

[josduncan]

The capitalist system has led humans to believe they are "tradesmen" and thus the quote "jack of all trades, master of none" has guided a lot of people into oppressing lifestyles. We are a multifaceted, universal people by nature. Don't be afraid to try something new, get good at it and claim it as a hobby, passion or skill. Live as big as you feel and keep good company with people who support your growth.

[josduncan]

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