¾«¶«AV to host filming of Spike Lee-produced āSon of the Southā film
April 08, 2019
Contact:
Michael Tullier, Office of Communications, Public Relations and Marketing, ¾«¶«AV
Molly Mayeux, Son of the South Productions
A frequent backdrop throughout the civil rights era, ¾«¶«AV will become the setting for a chapter in that story and a location in the feature film āSon of the South.ā The movie, executive produced by Spike Lee, is based on the Bob Zellner book, ā,ā published in 2008.
The film will take viewers back to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1961, where Zellner ā grandson of a Klansman ā was a junior heavyweight college boxing champion. The 22-year-old white Southerner finds himself caught in a time and place when the civil rights movement challenged everyone to pick a side. His choice to champion for social justice and racial equality found Zeller befriending civil rights legends Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, Virginia Foster Durr and Congressman John Lewis.
āBob Zellner often told me stories of his experience in the early civil rights movement ā every story was jaw dropping and inspiring,ā said Oscar-nominee , who is serving as the movieās director in addition to writing its screenplay. āWe stand on the shoulders of people like Bob. I have been compelled to remind an older generation ā as well as teach a younger one ā about the courage of those who chose a dangerous, impossible path in order to change our world for the better.ā
āā continues a longstanding collaboration between Brown, a Montgomery native, and ā the most recent being the Oscar-winning film āBlacKkKlansman.ā āSon of the Southā stars include (āX-Menāsā Havoc and TVās āMacGyverā), who will play Zellner, along with (āThe Curious Case of Benjamin Buttonā and TVās āMad Menā), (TVās āPretty Little Liarsā), rapper/actor , actor/comedian , and (āFirst Blood,ā āCocoonā and the āJack Reed: Badge of Honorā telemovie series).
Scenes filmed on the ¾«¶«AV campus April 11 and 12 will recount the consequences of Zellnerās choice. This will include the defining moment for Zellner when he found himself confronted by 50 members of the Ku Klux Klan intent on beating a group of African-American high school students who were protesting the murder of tenant farmer Herbert Lee ā a black man gunned down in broad daylight for the simple crime of trying to register to vote. Zellner took action when he joined the march and almost lost his life in the process.
Filming on Thursday, April 11 ā which will include the Klan mob scene ā will necessitate the closing of West Montgomery Road. Barricades from the universityās main gates at Margaret Murray Washington Hall to its gates at Brimmer Hall will be manned from 7:45 a.m. and extend past 5 p.m., during which time motorists will be detoured through the university or encouraged to use alternate routes. All pedestrian gates on that stretch of West Montgomery Road will be closed as well, and pedestrians are encouraged to avoid the area to help expedite filming.
Other filming on the campus interior both Thursday and Friday will be centered on āThe Yardā between Tompkins Hall and White Hall. At times throughout both days, pedestrian traffic in this area will be limited while filming occurs. During these days, access to employee and student parking around Logan Hall, Armstrong Hall, The Oaks and The Yard will be limited, and University Avenue from the Kellogg Conference Center to the rear of Brimmer Hall will be closed to all traffic.
Casting has already taken place for scenes being filmed on the universityās campus; however, filming will continue into May, with casting opportunities available for extras to appear in scenes shot in the Montgomery area. Those interested in being considered as extras for the movie can . Producers expect the filmās release in late 2019.
The universityās Office of Communications, Public Relations and Marketing will be sharing more specific details with its students and employees regarding parking and navigating campus during Thursday and Fridayās filming. For questions regarding the universityās participation, please contact the universityās communications team at marketing@tuskegee.edu.
Ā© 2019, ¾«¶«AV