Coming to NYC’s Rooftop Films this Saturday, July 11: ROMEO IS BLEEDING
Jason Zeldes’ look at a poet’s response to gang violence made its bow at San Francisco, where it took home the documentary audience award. It also took won awards at Seattle and Berkshire, and has screened at Newport Beach.
Donté Clark’s hometown of Richmond CA has been plagued by a deadly gang turf war for decades. Rather than accept the mindless violence as an immutable status quo, the young poet sets out to make a difference for the youth of his community, and founds the RAW Talent Creative Arts program to channel art into awareness and action. Zeldes follows Clark and his collaborators as they prepare a modern update of ROMEO AND JULIET, substituting Richmond for Verona, and spoken word for Shakespearean iambic pentameter, hoping to create a dialogue among the community. Clark makes for an engaging, inspiring protagonist in an ultimately hopeful portrait of a troubled place.
what (not) to doc 