Collaborative Film Short Debuts Exposing Millennial Dissonance, Womanhood, PTSD and Healing at the Indie Grits Film Festival
Much of when a parent and child are in conflict, goes unresolved in Black Families. Often times it takes generations or extreme circumstances to initiate the healing process especially in a mother daughter relationship. That supernatural heeling was depicted in the recent film short entitled Laundry Day both written and directed by Olamma Oparah and Cinematographer Colbie Fray.
Dedicated to Toni Morrison, Laundry Day was conceptualized around Poet, Victoria P. Allen’s poem, “Mother’s Stain”. The film focuses on millennial dissonance between mother and daughter and how technology aides in the erasure of Black culture, traditions and generational discord. It also questions the ability to recognize or not, the “charge to keep” generations passed as a silencing force within Black and female relationships.
“This project was a labor of love and resonated with so many women. As we embarked on the film, I began to get feedback from young millennial Black women about their issues with their mothers. The conversation often leads to a single topic: How do we heal expectations from women [our mothers] who defines womanhood by vastly different social standards?” says Olamma Oparah.
Laundry Day Trailer Link:
Official Social Media Handles/Hashtags:
#LaundryDayFilm
@laundrydayshortfilm
@sallywalkermedia
Look out for the Laundry Day film premiere on the festival circuit or click HERE to watch the trailer now. For more information, inquiries, reviews and interviews email info@kechthis.com or call 718-213-1702.
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About Olamma Oparah:
Olamma Oparah is an Atlanta based Director and independent radical. Her choice of cinema lies in its ability to convey the inner reachings of the soul. Her use of sound and visual associations represent the universal knowledge expressed through the African diasporal experience, deconstructing mainstream media’s representation of Black women, men and children. Themes in her work often pose the questions, “How does one heal from genetically ingrained PTSD?” or, “How do women exact internal change if rage is impolite, unaccepted, or ignored?”
About Colbie Fray:
Colbie Fray is a director and cinematographer based in Atlanta, GA. Her love for camera work stems from being chosen at nine years old as a videographer for her school news station. She is self-taught and continues to learn new ways of storytelling through lighting and composition. Through her work, she hopes that Black women in particular are able to see themselves outside of western society’s “white male gaze” in tern, opening dialogue towards conversations that allow autonomous definition.
