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Meena Ayittey on Directing a Fight Against Racial Injustice and Modern-Day Lynching

20/04/2023
Production Company
London, UK
236
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LBB’s Tará McKerr speaks to director Meena Ayittey about her short film ‘History on Repeat’ chronicling the story of Jill Collen Jefferson, the individual behind the organisation working to help victims of racial injustice and end modern-day lynchings in the USA

Meena Ayittey is an activist, screenwriter and a filmmaker in equal measure. The polish of her projects is directly influenced by the causes she holds dear. Born in London to Ghanaian parents, Meena has dedicated herself to telling the stories often left untold.

Meena’s short film ‘History on Repeat’ is a fictional account of the life of real world lawyer and activist Jill Collen Jefferson. Jill, as Meena describes her, is a complete powerhouse. She runs Julian Legal; a non-profit civil rights and international human rights organisation. Jill works tirelessly with the rest of the Julian team, to provide legal services to victims and survivors of discrimination in the United States. One of Julian’s main goals is to bring an end to modern-day lynchings; an atrocity that makes up part of USA’s horrifying past — and hideously — part of its present.

The project was in the making since covid reared its ugly head, but now is available for viewing. Although the film is a fictional depiction, it is authentic to Jill’s experience. Watch it with headphones on, volume up, world out.

It deserves your full attention.

In the opener, Meena dedicates the film “To all the women who have fought with quiet dignity and immense courage in the struggle for civil rights.”

Here’s what Meena had to say about her experience making ‘History on Repeat’.

LBB> From ‘Mama’ and ‘Black Creative: Race and the Advertising Industry’, ‘All the Little Things’ to now ‘History on Repeat’, racism, discrimination and the fight for justice is a prevalent theme in your work. In your view, why is filmmaking such a powerful tool for addressing these issues?

Meena> I really don’t ever set out to make films about racism or discrimination. I want to tell stories that explore the real lived experiences of people. Often these stories are either not usually portrayed authentically, or they are not portrayed at all. Being a Black female perhaps makes me sensitive to these causes due to my inability to ignore them. I hope that the characters I create in my films encourage empathy and provoke audiences in a positive way.

Filmmaking is a powerful medium because you can capture real, unfiltered emotions and reactions. For a short period of time, you have an audience to which you can really speak to. You have the ability to show them a point of view they had not considered or a perspective which they have not seen before. Much of my work comes from a desire to present subjects in a way that forces audiences to think and reflect. Film is entertainment but also a vehicle to teach and enlighten.


LBB> Great Guns knew about your passion for telling stories that support the unsupported and asked if you would like to direct the film, knowing it would be a labour of love all round, what compelled you to want to tell the story?

Meena> I approached this film like I do with all projects, by asking myself - does this story speak to me and can I do it justice? Meeting Jill sealed the deal for me. We first met on a Zoom call during the first UK lockdown. We bonded over discussions about civil rights, the American south and the urge to make a difference. One thing to note about Jill is that she is a phenomenal force. I was hugely inspired by her passion for her work and what she fights for daily. As discussions about the project progressed, I realised that her story is one of dedication and hope, and one that I really wanted to tell.


LBB> What were the ideas you brought to the original script for ‘History on Repeat’?

Meena> For me, learning about Jill’s work, and what she sees and hears in her job was important for realism. There are countless cases in the southern US where the victims, often Black men and women, have been killed in heinous circumstances and I wanted to stay true to this. I felt that portraying one of the victims as somebody that Jill sees daily could really illustrate that these victims could be anyone; a friend, an aunt, a neighbour.

The autopsy results, the paperwork that you see in the film all reflect Jill’s real life and these details were important to me. Jill's relationship with the victim's mother was also a critical element I felt important to include. I ran all drafts of the script and animatic past Jill to ensure I was depicting her as accurately as possible.


LBB> Can you tell us a little about the journey from crowdfunding the campaign to shooting the final film?

Meena> The creation of this project has spanned several years now. Having no idea how long the lockdowns would last, we were forced to keep pushing back the shoot dates. This actually gave us the valuable time we needed to develop the script and concept. I feel the project is stronger because we had that additional time.

I was also pregnant during the pre-production and unable to travel for a period of time. As soon as travel restrictions were lifted and I could travel to the USA, we went into full production mode- finalising the crew and the script as well as the shoot date.

Returning to work so soon after the birth of my first child was a difficult choice. However, in a way it also made me more determined. I have a Black son and I feel the need to at least try and do everything in my power to make the world a better place for him. The work that Jill is doing is part of this.

Every day of the crowdfund was an opportunity to raise awareness of this film. This meant daily emails, social media posts, phone calls and texts to make people aware of the project and to raise funds. It was tough as I was contending with morning sickness, medical appointments and general fatigue. The enthusiasm and energy of the team really helped carry me through this. We had a wonderful response and managed to reach people all over the world.


LBB> Tell us about shooting in New Orleans. 

Meena> The energy of New Orleans is electric. The air is filled with music, art and culture. It is rich and potent. This is what has stayed with me. I think back to my time walking around the French Quarter, the sounds of the many musicians and performers near the French Market. It's an atmosphere that is hard to describe. All of this is combined with the presence of the Mississippi river, which itself carries with it so much weight and history. It all creates something very unique which made shooting in New Orleans so special. We shot the film over a weekend. One day was an afternoon on set filming inserts. The next day was a full on day where we shot for almost 12 hours.


LBB> How did you find all the crew, post, music team who worked on the film?

Meena> We had a fantastic post production team who went above and beyond to bring this project together. My long-time collaborator, editor David Warren, at Nomad Editing was involved early on. I worked with him to create animatics of the storyboard and set the pace. We needed to create a specific sense of rhythm for the film and Dave worked hard to get this right. Absolute Post and OTO Film reached out during the crowdfund as they really wanted to be involved. They did such a great job with the colour grade, nailing the golden southern light that I was after. The team at OTO film were equally wonderful. The sound design was a crucial element to the film and they nailed it. The New Orleans crew were part of a dream team that Great Guns had previously worked with and who very kindly came out on board to make this project a reality.


LBB> Was your DOP local to New Orleans?

Meena> Our DOP Nick Shamblott was local to New Orleans and also really understood the look and feel I was after. I worked closely with him in pre production to work out how we could maximise the little time we had on set. Together we found a way to best convey the repetition of Jill's daily life and how to punctuate that repetition with moments of intense emotion. He is super talented and I feel lucky to have had the opportunity to work with him.


LBB> What do you hope to achieve with this film for Jill’s law firm?

Meena> Bringing attention to Jill and the incredible work that she does was always our primary goal. Especially now, in this post George Floyd climate, people often ask what they can do to help. One of the many ways is to read up on past and present civil rights cases, support Black owned businesses and also support Black civil rights activists like Jill. When it comes to the US judicial system, so much work needs to be done to ensure that families of tragedy see justice. Without civil lawyers like Jill, often there is no justice. So what I really hope to achieve is more support for Jill and civil rights lawyers like her.


LBB> Anything else you’d like to add?

Meena> I’m proud that we managed to shoot with a crew that was local to New Orleans. We also had a very diverse crew which was hugely important to me. It made the ideas on set flow freely and it felt completely natural rather than forced or tokenistic. This is something I always strive for. Everyone involved in the project came on board because of Jill's story and the fact that the script spoke to them. This has been a real labour of love, from the initial calls with Jill, right through to the shoot and the post production. The project was initiated during covid so the whole team worked through several lock downs and the uncertainty of the global pandemic. Finally seeing our hard work out in the world feels like a huge achievement.


You can find more information about Julian Legal’s work and how to donate here.

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