Filmmaking Is Not Just Entertainment. It’s a Powerful Tool.
By Dusan Brown, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
“Do what you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life.” I have always been obsessed with listening to stories, pondering alternate endings, telling them, and building entire worlds—taking viewers on a journey through my character’s eyes and hopefully getting them to understand a character's choices, as well as forcing them to view their world from a perspective they thought they’d never see. Having been an actor all of my life, directing comes naturally to me. I love leading actors on an adventure, letting them explore and find truths about their character in order to create something real and authentic, which takes, at least for me, knowing things like what the character eats every day or what they have in their pockets at any given time.
From the day I first held a camcorder around age five or wrote my first story around third grade, I've been asking “why and how,” exploring the ins and outs of Hollywood magic. I would then attempt to apply this same storytelling magic to my characters and in my productions, whether it was a music video or short film.
At age eight, I booked The Lion King on Broadway… pure magic! Every night that I was on as Young Simba, from the opening scene to the death of Mufasa, nothing made my heart more full than hearing the audience’s reaction as they went on this magical ride with us. Inside I giggled because I knew first hand exactly how I was connected to the wire and at exactly what point I would fall into the stampede… inside secret.
At age nine, when I landed one of my first Hollywood TV gigs, I found myself hanging from a cliff with Neil Patrick Harris coming to my rescue! I was in heaven. This was my first time seeing and experiencing the magic of TV and films first hand!
Around age ten, while working as an actor on set of 42—it was also my first time working alongside Chadwick Boseman—the director, Mr. Brian Helgeland, allowed me my first behind the camera glimpse for about 30 minutes. As I marveled at Chad’s ability to fully internalize and interpret the essence of the legend Mr. Jackie Robinson, and the manner in which Mr. Helgeland communicated with him, I was hooked. I was hooked on the possibility of being able to connect the puzzle of how Hollywood magic really occurred. I became obsessed with Inside the Actors Studio and Film Riot on YouTube. My mom bought me a camcorder, and my curiosity took over.
Around age twelve, the summer after seventh grade, I had an opportunity to write, direct, edit, and score my very first short film with equipment, a crew, and even a set mentor through the program Ghetto Film School. Although the program was intended for high school students, after being selected as one of their youngest accepted fellows, I knew that I had to optimize every class, every lecture, every guest speaker workshop, and every studio tour. Every bit of knowledge shared, I soaked it up like a sponge and was ever-thirsty to devour more.
While in high school, I pursued the Cinematic Arts track at my now alma mater, Los Angeles County High School for the Arts (LACHSA), and served in almost every crew capacity across 34 productions: 17 of which I either wrote or directed and 17 as a crew member ranging from DP to PA. I also collaborated with a former classmate, serving as Grip on a professional shoot for rapper Blueface’s “First Class” official music video.
Last June was my first time submitting to film festivals. My short Reece, which was created my junior year of high school, so far has earned me the prestigious recognition of becoming a 2020 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program Winner (Art, Film) and a 2020 National YoungArts Foundation Film Winner. It has also won five awards—Best Student Film (2x), The Spark Award, Best Short, and Best Cinematography—was nominated 13 other times, and has been officially selected by 14 film festivals.
Along with my dad and brother Dante Brown, who is an actor in Netflix’s Dash & Lily, we co-wrote two features we’re hoping to pitch soon and have over 20 short and feature ideas in my project portfolio. It’s from these experiences of going out, making something, gaining valuable feedback from teachers, peers, and mentors, and then learning from the flaws that keeps me passionate and excited about the craft on both sides, in front of the camera as an actor and behind the camera as a director and writer.
For me, filmmaking is not just entertainment. It’s a powerful tool. The making of a film is one big conversation that could potentially spark a bunch of other conversations—it could lead to times of healing for people or it could shed light on chaos that is brewing underneath the surface of an established civilization, especially in times like these. My award-winning short Reece is currently the best representation of my voice as a young filmmaker, and how I feel about the trials and tribulations of being a young Black male in our country. Whenever Reece screens, my goal is for viewers to see what it’s like to be someone like my main character… to self-reflect, to gain a deeper understanding and a spirit of compassion and empathy, or simply, to put themselves in this character’s shoes so that the next time they see an African American or someone like Reece, they see beyond the superficial.
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Chronicle. Dope. Joker. Luce and Waves. As a filmmaker and film lover, I find myself transfixed with stories like these, stories about anti-heroic characters whose problems deal with ethics and morality. While watching these movies, I often question my own ethics and morality and ponder different outcomes. These are the types of thought-provoking stories I plan to make and the characters I aspire to portray. It’s because of stories like these why I love acting and directing—they grant such liberties, like the ability to shed light on social problems not faced by just African Americans, but stories that demonstrate common threads within humanity. Although it’s getting much better, I feel that not a lot of stories are told from my perspective. I hope to join the ranks of the great storytellers that shed light on many of these societal issues, developing complex characters and creating profound stories.
Mr. Denzel Washington and Mr. George C. Wolfe… Mrs. Viola Davis, Mr. Glynn Turman, Mr. Chadwick Boseman, Mr. Colman Domingo and Mr. Michael Potts… I am in some way forever indebted to the abundance of knowledge gained from each of them while working on the Netflix film Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. In addition to my on set time working with them, all of them were gracious enough to give me one-on-one time to pick their brains… and boy did I pick! This spoke volumes and set a precedent, as it was surreal witnessing their open-mindedness and compassion to take the time to share pearls of wisdom with me, a 17 year old at the time who was the only minor in the cast. The combined wealth of information they shared is so profound. One day I hope to be able to articulate and express many of these pearls, in the hopes that just as they’ve, in essence, passed on certain things to me, that I’ll be able to do the same with others I encounter throughout my journey.
In Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, I play Ma’s nephew, Sylvester. My character has a speech impediment and unbeknownst to him, Ma decides to put Sylvester in certain situations designed to help him get over his stutter, like by being a part of her band as her sort of hype man who introduces her song. Without giving away spoilers for those unfamiliar with the play of the same name by August Wilson, obviously this poses certain obstacles for Sylvester to overcome, and throughout the movie, you’ll see my character’s growth.
You know that phrase about art imitating life? Well that happened to me while shooting Ma Rainey, specifically as it relates to my personal time spent with big brother Chad... I experienced tremendous personal growth.
The day had come to shoot Sylvester’s big scene. The more times we did the take, the more nervous I became. No matter how reassuring the entire cast and director was in my ability to nail it, something inside of me wouldn’t allow me to deliver. Afterall, I’m amongst Oscar, Tony, and Emmy winners—huge shoes to fill! Chad noticed my internal struggle and in between takes, he tapped me on the shoulder, looked me in the eye and told me, “Take your time. This is all for you. You’re here for a reason.” It was then that I relaxed, took a deep breath, and had a breakthrough, not just for this scene but in life. This was just one reflection, but there were several more encounters with Chad that I’ll forever cherish. Whether he was showing me jiu-jitsu moves, having a drumming session in his trailer, giving me books to read, or challenging me about my college and future career choices, he had a way of showing he cared and became the big brother everyone deserves to have in their lives. While attending Chad’s private Malibu memorial, hearing the stories shared and witnessing the beautiful impact he had on his family and friends made me even more proud to know him… and proud to have shared the commonality of being a part of his first movie, 42, and what would later become his last movie, Ma Rainey. I wish I could thank him again for supporting me and writing one of my college recommendation letters, but more importantly for being an amazing example to look up to... and for just being Chad.
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom has been the most eye-opening experience for me in all of my 18 years of being an actor thus far. I learned more about the industry in my two months of being in the midst of these amazing people than I've learned my entire life. If that’s what’s meant by “do what you love and you’ll never have to work a day in your life,” then someone please cast me for more roles like this… or perhaps the writer/director in me should say, I can’t wait to collaborate with like-minded peers to create future classics, such as Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and the likes.
STORY DUSAN BROWN
PHOTOS LEIGH KEILY
Dusan Brown is a young actor is set to make his co-lead debut with Viola Davis and the late Chadwick Boseman in Netflix’s ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom.’ The film centers on Ma Rainey, the "Mother of the Blues," and her band as they gather at a recording studio in Chicago in 1927. Aside from his acting work, Dusan is also a 2020 U.S. Presidential Scholar (Arts, Film), a 2020 National YoungArts Foundation Winner (Film) and is currently a Freshman at Chapman University studying Directing and Screenplay Writing.