Pentathalon Semester 1

A recent film that has been catching a lot of attention recently is Shaka King’s Judas and the Black Messiah, which is planned to be released on February 21, 2021. It tells the tale of the FBI’s access to Fred Hampton through members of the Black Panther Party. Hampton is a notorious figure in American history, specifically Civil Rights history, for his role as an activist and fighter for Black Americans. In this discussion, Jason Fitzroy Jeffers and Shaka King discuss the production of the film, especially the specifics with notable actors like Daniel Kaluuya, LaKeith Stanfield, and Dominique Fishback, and how they they were able to embody the past with today’s technology and techniques of film, as well using influences from other notable figure in Black entertainment. After listening to the discussion, you can tell that King wanted to bring Hampton to life, paying special attention to the speech of the actors after studying Hampton’s verbal recordings and directing the actors to study the history of the roles they play. For everyone who has contributed to the project, it is an honor for them to play their roles, so it is no doubt that they’d want to play their roles correctly. This discussion also echoes the fact that as much as the bigger details such as set and costume design matter in a film that repeats the past, smaller details like accents and speech patterns matter as well. The talk makes me excited for the movie and I am looking forward to viewing it once it’s released. It is always intriguing to listen to what directors pay attention to the most, especially when the movie encompasses an important part of American history.