Well-Respected Filmmakers Make Me Nervous

Well- hello there. For my first blog (ever) I am pleased to say that tonight's subject involves a very special opportunity I had this weekend to attend the 20th Anniversary Screening of Spike Lee's Do the Right Thing- right here at the fabulous Fox Theater in Atlanta.

I came to be invited to this event due to a happy (for me) accident- my boss' annual summer vacation. Earlier this past week when I heard he would not be able to accept his invite to the VIP reception and the screening that followed, I naturally jumped at the chance to say- "So, you think I might be able to go in your place?"

A few days later, and armed with a Guillotine Post hat for my husband Kris to sport at the event- we were off to the Fox.

As a tween of the late 80's and early 90's I was very much aware of Spike Lee the public figure. But it was not until I reached my early 20s, and my serious interest in filmmaking began, that I sought out the films of Spike Lee.

Do the Right Thing was the first of his films that I watched from beginning to end. Sprawled across my couch on a lazy summer afternoon with a handful of friends, I became introduced to a story so rich with detail that beads of sweat formed on the back of my neck despite the well-cranked AC. The characters that populated this film became so familiar to me, that halfway through second act- I felt as though I had met them somewhere before. That I was part of the neighborhood. This was no small feat to a little white girl who had grown up in the suburbs of Marietta.

I was invested in people that populated this story. Even the ones that I wasn't meant to like. So much so that - when the film's climax erupted- I naively didn't see it coming. I could only sit rigidly with my hand to my mouth as the neighborhood that had been built before my eyes was destroyed. As characters behaved in a way that I couldn't have thought possible yet seemed so inevitable- as even Mother Sister screamed "Burn it down! Burn it down!"

But it didn't end there. The film continued to the next day. As if to say- "Hey, it's just another day in the neighborhood." Kids played ball in the rubble. People moved on.

Wow. This wasn't just making a movie. This was painting a whole world for people who had never experienced it as well as those who knew it as surely as their own address.

Upon arriving backstage at the Fox for the pre-reception, Kris and I enjoyed some of the film-themed appetizers- snow cones, pizza, as well as the early 90s tunes (which Kris noted took him back to his roller rink days). While in the midst of a friendly chat, I suddenly noticed a crowd forming so quickly behind me that I was nearly bumped off-stage. After stumbling awkwardly into a photographer to avoid being ejected into the orchestra pit- I noticed I was standing mere feet from Spike Lee! Not one to stand in the way of a gathering crowd of admirers and press- my husband and I slipped over to the bar and out of the way.

For the next twenty minutes, Kris tried to convince me to go up to Spike Lee and shake his hand. Perhaps strike up a conversation? The thought seemed ludicrous. The only thing I could come up with to say to Spike Lee was - "Gee- I really like your movies," or some such nonsense. I became painfully aware of my lacking the necessary bravado it seems just about every filmmaker is supposed to possess.

What did I have to say to Spike Lee anyway? He's made some 50 feature films, launched careers, and inspired a generation of underrepresented artistic voices. And I- had one of my films screen in the basement of a coffee house in Kansas City.

And they misspelled my name in every piece of press and online material. First name and last.

After another glass of wine, Kris was able to convince me to walk up to Spike Lee under the charade that he would ask Mr. Spike Lee if he would take a picture with his wife. Spike obliged and Kris snapped our photo. I managed to choke out a "Thank you" followed by a feeble "We really love your movie"- before scuttling as far to the other side of the stage as I could.

Yes- I would love to say that I overcame my fear and had an inspiring conversation with Spike Lee about the craft of filmmaking. But, folks- that's just not how it happened.

I did, however, get a picture of myself with Spike (looking slightly annoyed) for my husband and I to cherish for years to come. And I did get to see a fantastic movie in one of the last surviving movie palaces in the country. Top it off with a rousing Q and A with Spike, one of the producers, Radio Raheem, and Mookie's sister and I'd say it was pretty memorable evening. Scroll down and check out some of the pics for yourself.

Me and Spike Lee himself.

View of the pre-reception from the balcony.

Kris waits for the show to begin.

Spike Lee, one of the film's producers, Joie Lee, and Bill Nunn
shed some light on making Do the Right Thing and answer some
perplexing audience questions...