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Art of War
TYPE: Documentary
GENRE: Documentary
STATUS: Pre-Production
LOGLINE
Art of War is a documentary series explores the light and shadow surrounding some of the world’s most dramatic art inspired by mankind’s darkest days- wars.
SYNOPSIS
Art of War is a thirty minute documentary series that explores the stories surrounding creative works inspired by the worst of human conflicts- WAR. Our museums and homes are lined with these wondrous works which tell stories of courage and triumph. Behind each work, there is an untold story about its creator and an equally compelling tale about the battle which inspired it.
ARTISTIC STATEMENT
Art of War is both a reflective and historical series, which offers perspectives on art, the psychology of creativity and human conflict. Filming has only recently begun. Direct and insightful interviews, verite footage, dramatic news, archival footage, and animation frame and contextualize the story are planned. The show will be presented in a news magazine style with each episode consisting of three segments covering various art forms, including but not limited to music, poetry, murals, paintings, books, pottery, and sculpture. The segments will include commentary from experts in the fields of art, art history, history, and psychology and will be woven together with narration.
KEY CREW
Ramona L. Taylor - Director/Writer/Producer
Ramona Taylor, a graduate of Duke University and the University of Richmond T.C. Williams School of Law, has worked as principal and founder of Shockoe Productions and Caring Field Films. She is a published writer, accomplished researcher, award winning screenwriter, and producer as well as a respected attorney. She penned the feature film, Camp DOA (Magic City Films), which screened at the 2008 Pan African Film Festival. Her solo directorial debut, My River Bridge, a PSA about the importance of the James River, was the winner of the Professional Division for the 2009 Streaming the James Video Competition. Her short films have been official selections in national film festivals, including the Charlotte Black Film Festival, San Diego Black Film Festival, the Waynesboro Short Film Showcase, Legacy Media International Film Festival, and the North Carolina Black Film Festival. Her mini-doc, The Case for Dr. Patricia E. Bath, earned her a finalist spot and was screened at the YouTube Space in Los Angeles. This film earned her attention from NBC and PBS. She has worked as script supervisor on the Amazon/ABC/Disney pilot, Point of Honor, and as a script supervisor for BET’s Joyful Noise.
Cedric Owens - Producer/Cinematographer
Cedric Owens, a graduate of Northern Arizona University- Flagstaff, is an Emmy winning media professional whose work almost spans a decade. He has worked on a range of media platforms and programs, including news magazines, documentaries, PSAs, commercials, and shorts. In 2010, his produced work, Spoken Word, received was nominated for 4 Emmys making him the first student to receive an Emmy nomination for the Southwest region and the first student from his University to receive this honor. His recent work, Heroin: Hardest Hit (2016, co-producer) recently won a regional 2016 Telly Award, and his documentary films, Living in a Food Desert (2015, co-producer) and Football (2014, co-producer) each earned him three Mideast regional Emmy awards. The show, VSU Today, which he co-produces with Jesse Vaughan (The Last Punch, Juwanna Mann) was garnered several awards including 14 regional Emmys. He is an accomplished cinematographer, editor, and photographer.
R. Donnell Hall - Researcher/Writer
R. Donnell. Hall holds a bachelors in Mass Communications from Norfolk State University and is a Masters candidate at Virginia State University. Hall worked for the Washington Post, but transitioned to ABC News- Washington where he worked with Ted Koppel, David Brinkley and Carole Simpson. He served as a researcher, desk assistant and production assistant for such shows as Nightline, This Week, Weekend News, World News – This Morning, and Good Morning America. Following his time at ABC, Hall joined the Richmond Public Schools Department of Media Services and Public Information. He worked as part of the Visual Literacy with Richmond Public Schools program team. This cable access program was designed to improve literacy for urban students. While continuing work as a media liaison, he also served for more than twenty years as a class room teacher in Special Education providing instruction in grades K-12 and for multiple disabled populations.
D. Cornelius Wright - Editor
D. Cornelius Wright is the principal at Full Motion Media, founded in 2004, which delivers affordable, effective, and easy to use video solutions for businesses and individuals. Wright specializes in different styles of video including montage and on-location, while utilizing the latest technology. Wright directs a team of award winning professional videographers and cinematographers and whose work includes documentaries, shorts, feature films, commercials, and live events. Wright served as Director of Photography on the award winning short Relativity Redux as well as had his work screened at the North Carolina Black Film Festival, Charlotte Black Film Festival, and the Legacy Media International Film Festival. He served as Producer/Director and Photography/Cinematographer on the documentary-style feature, Black Wall Street, which was released in 2016.
Robert Byrne - Graphic Artist/Animator
Rob Byrne’s career started while he lived in Subic Bay, the Republic of the Philippines where he grew up. He attended college at the University of California at San Diego and Virginia Commonwealth University. He double majored in electronic media and photography. He has worked for more than fifteen years in the broadcast news industry creating news packaging and graphic support, and animation for both news crews and sales force. To date, Byrne has earned two Tellys, two Associated Press awards, One Emmy and is awaiting the results of two additional Emmy nominations.
Gabriel A. Taylor, Jr. - Researcher/Historian
Gabriel A. Taylor, Jr. graduated from Hampton University with a Bachelors in History and from Southern New Hampshire University with a Masters in History. This honors graduate’s degree concentrations were in Military History. Taylor has completed research on Chinese Military Philosophy, American Military conflicts, South American revolutionary regimes, and wars in the Middle East and Russia.
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The Gotham Film & Media Institute is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding, developing and celebrating the people and projects that shape the future of story.