A.V. Rockwell: The Film Industrys Cultural Reset
The Director:
A.V. Rockwell is no stranger to accolades and recognition when it comes to her filmmaking expertise.
written by Coach Mozingo
Rockwell is an Award winning screenwriter and director from Queens, New York. A Thousand and One premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and received the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize, Sundance’s top award for the Drama category.
From left to right: William Catlett, Lena Waithe, A.V. Rockwell, Teyanna Taylor / Courtesy of IMBd
She was the grand-prize winner of the Tribeca Film Institute and CHANEL’s Through Her Lens grant, for her film Feathers. Feathers made its Worldwide Premiere at the 43rd Toronto Film Festival. Feathers was recently acquired by Fox Searchlight. Feathers now shares the same house as Oscar winners Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri (2017), The Shape of Water (2017), and 12 Years a Slave (2013). If you haven’t seen Feathers, I urge you to check it out!
For A Thousand And One, Rockwell wanted someone she thought the character could connect to, ”…I didn’t want anything to come off as performative.” She explains what she saw in Taylor's audition that convinced her that the singer could take on the challenging star role of Inez in ‘A Thousand And One’. The role of Inez is so pure and raw.
The Actors:
As soon as I saw the marketing for the film with Teyanna Taylor, I was like oh psshh —no brainer— I’m going.
Teyana Taylor is no stranger to the big screen. From Madea’s Big Happy Family to Honey, Rise Up & Dance, Teyana has gracefully ebbed and flowed in music, dance, and acting. But honey, Teyana’s performance in A Thousand and One is ELECTRIC.
Teyanna as Inez / COURTESY OF AARON RICKETTS/FOCUS FEATURES
Teyana has appeared in a number of films and television shows, including Stomp the Yard 2: Homecoming, The Trap, Coming 2 America, Miracles Across 125th Street, and her own tv show with her husband, Iman Shumpert. In all roles, she has been able to showcase her gift as a universal entertainer.
One of the male leads of the film was played by the incomparable, William Catlett. Catlett played the role of Lucky in the film— who is Taylor’s character love interest. My first introduction to Catlett’s work was his character in Black Lighting, as Lala. Since then I’ve been in awe of the emotional connection to his roles. When I saw he was also on the bill,—it was an immediate yes. Not only is he an incredible actor, Catlett recently got in his directing bag with short film, Malcolm. Stop playing with this man— HE HAS RANGE.
Will Catlett (Lucky) / Aaron Kingsley (Young Terry) COURTESY OF AARON RICKETTS/FOCUS FEATURES
Taylor & Catlett ripped the screen in half with their performance — BUT baaaybeeee— Josiah Cross went right behind them and tore up the remaining pieces!
Josiah had me in tears. Like those eyes wide, tear rolling, silent cries. I don’t want to spoil the film for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet, but when sh*t finally hit the fan for real, Josiah gave us a monologue that left the theatre silent as a moment.
Josiah Cross, IMDb
The Producer:
Of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t give all the flowers to the infamous producer and filmmaker, Lena Waithe. Waithe has been leaving an imprint of excellence on the screen since her acting debut with Master of None. Waithe is the creator of the drama series The Chi and the BET comedy series Boomerang and Twenties. She also wrote and produced the crime film Queen & Slim which grossed $47.7 million worldwide. Get into it.
Lena Waithe Image provided my NY Times
My favorite elements of A Thousand And One:
I love that I could not figure out the dynamics of the characters until it was clear. Because I couldn’t place the relationships right away, it made me pay close attention to the body language and how the characters looked at each other. The camera angles helped with this. I said to myself, wait the characters of Terry and Inez behave like siblings, but is Inez the momma… right? I was trying to figure that thang out!
The close up style the film was shot in provided a character depth that is necessary for a film this powerful. I also really enjoyed the sound bites of the background dialogue that was happening throughout the film. Everything felt real, like I was listening to a friend tell me about their life.
I don’t know if this element of the film was suppose to be picked up, but there was a scene where Josiah’s character, Terry, was explaining what interested him, career wise, after high school. Terry responded with “Music” , and the love interest responded “…like rapping?” Terry responded “…no, like composing.” This struck a cord with me. Exposure is so important to developing your own interest. If young Terry hadn’t grown up watching Quincy Jones films and soaking up the scoring (music composing for films/shows) of the film, that life goal and interest may have not developed. Growing up, I used to draw and make up characters and stories. I didn’t realize until I was twenty-seven years old that I could’ve went to school for animation. There are careers and opportunities that many children, ESPECIALLY children of color—have no exposure to. Imagine taking a field trip as a kid to a Sundance Film Festival? There’s probably another little A.V. Rockwell running around somewhere creating stories as they play.
What Rockwell and this talented team of actors, writers, and producers have created with ‘A Thousand and One’, is a pivotal addition to the world of cinema.
A Thousand And One is a collection of imagery and sound that is sure to leave you breathless. This film told a touchable story of how life is unexpected, sometimes sacrifice is the only option, and how there are times— we don’t know what the fuck to do next.
(Cover photo courtesy of by Keith Major for EBONY Media)
-Coach Mozingo
