Spark: Igniting Dynamic Dialogue

This year Academy Theatre, one of the two venues hosting this event, is also a subject! We could think of no better way to close out this series than to talk with Artistic Director Robert Drake, and the filmmaker of Beyond The Script, Dr. Arshely Emile. 

The Academy Theatre is the longest running professional theatre in Georgia. Founded in 1956 by Frank Wittow, Academy has premiered over 400 new plays and continues its outreach work to people without a theatrical voice, incubates new theater companies, produces mainstage works, and remains a vital component of the Southeast’s theater community. Robert Drake is in his 14th season as the Academy Theatre’s Artistic Director and has been affiliated with the theatre since 2005. 

Dr. Arshley Emile is an award winning documentary director and cinematographer. His love and passion for filmmaking was something he was aware of as early as 8 years old, but it was not until he embarked on his dissertation on racism in public schools, that he realized that his admiration for visual arts spanned well beyond the classroom. Today he is the CEO and co-founder of Timberhouse Films, which he heads with his wife Stephania. 

Hosted by : Solana Ramirez Garcia, Individual Partner Resource Manager

Produced by:Loren Bray, Marketing Specialist

For our last episode on Filmer, who better to cap the series than an Atlanta icon?

Alice Lovelace is a cultural worker, performance artist, teacher, poet, organizer, author, and playwright. In 1978, she discovered the Neighborhood Arts Center and met Ebon Dooley (Leo Hale) and Toni Cade Bambara. Together, they organized poetry readings and classes while conducting meetings for the Southern Collective of African American Writers (SCAAW). In 1981, Ebon and Alice founded the nonprofit: Southeast Community Cultural Center located at the former Grant Park Elementary School and in 1984 opened the former school as The Arts Exchange – a studio space for artists, a theater, recording studio, two galleries, a dance studio, and home to the Atlanta Writers Resource Center. Between 1998 and 2000 Alice became executive director of Alternate ROOTS, an artists-led southern regional organization; and along with Dr. Lisa Delpit and actress Jane Fonda, she founded and stepped into the role of executive director of the Atlanta Partnership for Arts in Learning (APAL). Currently serving as the president of the board of ArtsXchange, Alice continues to serve the public need through programs implemented at the nonprofit’s newly renovated facility in East Point, GA. 

Hosted by: Solana Ramirez Garcia, Individual Partner Resource Manager

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing Specialist

We’re less than three weeks away from our screenings for Filmer 7 and we can’t wait to see you there! For this episode, we talk with Will Feagins and Kiara Gilbert as they analyze their film Kiara, Portrait of a Printmaker. 

Kiara Gilbert is a Jacksonville Florida native and a graduate of Florida State University. Their art explores how their emotional landscape is informed by growing up black and queer in the south. Through the use of print media and sculptural installations, they create scenes that speak on feelings of frustration, love, listlessness, and ancestral triumph and loss. They are a recipient of the Six Creative Grant, the Janice Hartwell Award in Printmaking, and participated in the Humanity in Action Berlin Fellowship.

A graduate of Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Will Feagins’ cinematography and direction often reflects the realness of the subject matter. His passion for film and hip hop has inspired his love for film, but his extensive portfolio has matured into documentaries that beautifully chronicle the complexities of the human experience through the lens of Black and Brown people. Feagins’ unique style continues to evolve as he finds more beautiful and innovative ways to tell a story.

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing Specialist

We continue our series on Filmer with our next film KARLA, directed by Elisee Junior St Preux and starring jazz artist Karla Harris!!

Elisee is a Haitian-American Filmmaker born in Miami, FL. A self-taught artist and pure cinephile, Elisee is the owner of the nostalgic multimedia company, "À La MODE Films" for Black artists that use the power of storytelling to uplift the Black experience on and off the screen. In addition to his creative work, Elisee is an Advisory Board member of the Morehouse Human Rights Film Festival, a brass musician, a community youth mentor, a mental health advocate, and a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. 

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing Specialist

We continue our series on Filmer with our next film KARLA, directed by Elisee Junior St Preux and starring jazz artist Karla Harris!!

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer-Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing Specialist

We’re starting Season 3 talking about Filmer! We speak with Ethan Payne and Nzzy this week regarding their film, Nzzy’s Ark! 

Ninel Nekay (preferably known as Nzzy) is a poet, filmmaker, teaching artist, theorist, and practitioner of the philosophies she depicts within her portfolio. She seeks to entice fellow worldbuilders to reimagine their pursue agency and their own utopias. She recently screened her visual poem “Bless Your Heart”, a film about Black women and the complicated relationship they have with femicide and intimate partner violence. Her craft has been recognized by artists such as Nile Rodgers, Pearl Cleage, and Julie Lythcott-Haims.

Ethan is a documentary filmmaker based in the southeast US. His feature and short documentaries have screened and won awards internationally. He loves tiki culture, vanilla ice cream, playing music with his band Easter Island, and telling stories about the often overlooked south. 

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer-Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing and Admin Specialist

For our last episode of 2024 we sit down with Robert Drake, Artistic Director of Academy Theatre! He talks about artists cultivating relationships and shares what resources they need in order to thrive in 2025.

Founded in 1956 by Frank Wittow, Academy Theatre is the longest running professional theatre in Georgia. Academy has pioneered a number of developments in Atlanta’s professional theatre community including the first professional theatre in the South to be integrated, and the first Southeastern Shakespeare Festival.Robert is in his 14th season as the Academy Theatre’s Artistic Director and has been affiliated with the theatre since 2005. At the Academy, he has directed and helped artistic associates create several shows, including eight world premieres. He directs the Academy Theatre intern programs and has directed educational videos for the Georgia Municipal Association, Emory University, and the GOOD Acting Studio.

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer-Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing and Admin Specialist

Ninel Nekay (preferably known as Nzzy) is a second-generation Jamaican-American Southerner and interdisciplinary cultural worker whose art demonstrates the stifled desires and salvation of Black non-men in the American South. As a poet, filmmaker, teaching artist, theorist, and practitioner of the philosophies she depicts within her portfolio, she seeks to entice fellow worldbuilders to reimagine their pursue agency and their own utopias. As Atlanta's former Youth Poet Laureate, previous National Black Arts Festival Fellow, Alternate Roots grantee, We Are Family Youth To The Front Fund recipient, and Next Doc Film Fellow, Color Congress intern, Nzzy has been active in arts and culture for nearly a decade. Her craft has been recognized by artists such as Nile Rodgers, Pearl Cleage, and Julie Lythcott-Haims.

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer-Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing Specialist and Admin Assistant

We sit down with Sheri Winkelmann, who plays talented baker and conflicted mother figure Della in The Cake!

Sheri Winkelmann is from Chicago and is a graduate of the Theater School at DePaul University. She has worked in theater off-Broadway, regionally, and internationally for over 25 years. Prominent film and television roles include NBC's, Chicago PD/Fire/Med, comedy series, 'Play by Play' on Roku, and many independent films. She was a featured writer/performer at Chicago's famous IO Theater with POV Weekly News Show with her original sketch characters. Her play, Love and Madness premiered at Silk Road Rising Theater in Chicago to sold-out audiences. Kelmann Films, Sheri's company, is passionate about elevating women and shedding light on pressing social issues. With a penchant for blending comedy and drama, Sheri enjoys crafting narratives that celebrate the strength and resilience of quirky, underrepresented people who prevail against all odds.

Hosted by: Jennifer Bauer-Lyons, Executive Director

Produced by: Loren Bray, Marketing and Admin Specialist

It’s opening night for our play reading series of The Cake, and we decided to invite members of our cast to offer their insights!!

First up is Alexandra Ficken, who plays bride-to-be Jen. Alexandra Ficken was born and raised in Atlanta, and is also a graduate of the University of Alabama with a BA in both musical theatre and dance. Atlanta credits include: Small Mouth Sounds, Goodnight Tyler, Hand to God, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, In Love and Warcraft (Alliance), Red Speedo, Appropriate (Actor's Express), ThanksKilling the Musical (Dad's Garage), Grand Concourse (Horizon), A Nice Family Gathering, A Nice Family Christmas (Stage Door Theatre), fml: How Carson McCullers Saved My Life (7 Stages), Sherlock Holmes (Georgia Ensemble). TV/Film: "Stranger Things", “Vice Principals”, “The Originals”, POMS, My Sweet Holiday, The Duff, An Actor Prepares. She sends a big thank you to Clifton for always cheering Atlanta actors on!