Synopsis:
The year is 1822, elder slave John Willie is being brutalized by the whip, then endures the ultimate, horrific humiliation. He is raped. Throughout, he strives in great earnest to be stoic, to summon the strong spirit that has helped him to survive the ravages of slavery. Yet, during the process, he begins to have visions 200 years into the future. It is the year 2022 and he is stunned by what he sees, images that terrify him more than what he is enduring at the moment. He survives the latest of many whippings. He suffers through the raping. But what he sees finally causes him to break. What visions of the future terrify "John Willie" so? " BEING B'UCKED # 22" is an innovative, compelling tale of cultural commentary.
Our Review
The characterization of John Willie & the artist performance are completely justified. The cinematography of the past scenes are done well. All the actors have lived up to the requirement of the scene.
What was a miss is the relevance between the past and the present. It gives an impression that sagging is a way of taking revenge of what their ancestors went through. Little does it portraits that John Willie is so averse to what he sees in the future because those expression does not go along with what he is going through at that moment. A loud scream at the end alone couldn’t justify that he felt being brutalized better than sagging…
Director Biography - Terrance Afer-Anderson TERRANCE AFER-ANDERSON Film, Television & Theatre Bio Having retired in 2016 as the chief public relations and media writer for the Norfolk District, Virginia Department of Health, Terrance Afer-Anderson accepted a position in March 2021 as a contract scriptwriter with the National Science Foundation. He has extensive creative writing, producing, directing, performance and hosting experience and credits, having produced and directed more than 50 productions for the stage and screen. A past Founding Associate Director of Norfolk, Virginia’s celebrated Generic Theater, he has also authored more than 20 productions for the stage. Among his popular works are HIRAM & NETTIE, a slave love story twice produced in Las Vegas; RAILINGS!, the tale of an HIV-positive teen runaway encounters with the spirit of a 19th African American cowboy on a freight train; THE TRIBESMAN, a serial killer with multiple personalities who is ultimately revealed to be a fallen angel; TEMPEST, a Hurricane Katrina love story; VICTORY MANOR, a Vietnam veteran with PTSD is being recruited by both a devout Christian and an impassioned Muslim; THE PRISM PROJECTS, an urban drama about two young brothers on opposite sides of the law who have opposing approaches to challenging gentrification; and THE FIFTH, a fatherhood drama, having its premiere at the 1st International Fatherhood Conference, San Francisco. Prior to his retirement from VDH, having for 16 years written, produced and hosted the talk show HEALTHWATCH (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL41E72C62CF119F71), Terrance Afer-Anderson was selected for the highly competitive, three-year Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Culture of Health Leaders fellowship program and wrote, produced and directed his first feature-length film, THE BLACK WALNUT, a novel docudrama and exploration of the African American prostate cancer disparity, which won a Telly Award and features a supporting cast of 7 actual prostate cancer survivors and 2 physicians, portraying themselves in dramatic roles. Other film projects include the documentary short GIVING ANGELS WINGS, chronicling the experience of fathers grieving the loss of their infant children, winner of a “Peoples’ Choice Award,” Mid-Atlantic Black Film Festival, THE PHOENIX & THE ASHES, a recreation of the 1926 abduction of Norfolk priest Father Vincent Warren by the Ku Klux Klan, and a film version of THE FIFTH. Recently, he wrote, produced, directed and appeared in the short BEING B’UCKED # 22, the story of an elder slave who has disturbing visions of the future while being whipped and violated. In 2020, he filmed his stage drama CAST IN HISTORY, featuring the incredible stories of nine African American notables from Hampton Roads, Virginia history. Most recently, he also recently completed production of only his second feature-length film, the documentary THE ANGELS IN THE DETAILS, chronicling the extraordinary history of the Basilica of St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception, the only African American basilica in the nation, the world. This documentary was an “Official Selection” for the monthly edition of both the Cannes World Film and the Royal Society of Television and Motion Picture Awards (India), ultimately becoming a Semi-Finalist of CWFF. Visit www.terravizioninc.com for more information.
Director Statement
I have been dismayed at the fashion statement many young men make today by "sagging," that is wearing their pants fully off their backsides. While many understand that is a form of sexual advertisement in the penal environment -- I would note that I also conducted fatherhood and self-empowerment workshops for incarcerated men over a span of 10 years -- the young men just don't seem to get the message that it is a self-assault on their dignity. I wanted to produce a film short that allows them to look at it from a different perspective, how a slave who was whipped and sexually brutalized to submission would see that fashion statement today.
Credits
Terrance Afer-Anderson Director The Angels in The Details, The Black Walnut, Giving Angels Wings, The Phoenix & The Ashes, The Fifth, Cast in History
Terrance Afer-Anderson Writer The Angels in The Details, The Black Walnut, Giving Angels Wings, The Phoenix & The Ashes, The Fifth, Cast in History
Terrance Afer-Anderson Producer The Angels in The Details, The Black Walnut, Giving Angels Wings, The Phoenix & The Ashes, The Fifth, Cast in History
Robert Shepherd Key Cast "Plantation Owner # 1" Lincoln, Evan Almighty, The Replacements, Mary For Mayor, Push Came to Shove, The Outsider, The Reins Maker, Worth the Price, The Colors of Emily, etc.
Specifications
Project Type: Experimental, Short
Runtime: 4 minutes 33 seconds
Production Budget: 5,500 USD
Country of Origin: United States
Country of Filming: United States
Language: English
Film Color: Color
First-time Filmmaker: No
Student Project: No
