We don't wait forthem to find us.We find them.
Film Skoolie is a Detroit-based mobile film lab that discovers the next generation of filmmakers in the neighborhoods where they live, developing artists whose lives and work aim to author the transformation of culture through film.
Our first mobile film labhas a name: Morpheus.
Named after the ancient Greek god of dreams, endowed with the ability to send images to the visions of sleeping people. Morpheus was a messenger between worlds, a shaper of perception, a conjurer of the unseen.
Most recently, in The Matrix franchise, Morpheus ventured into the underworld in search of the messianic protagonist, Neo.
Rumored to be The One.
My name is kA'RAMUU kUSH and Film Skoolie is my ikigai.
I teach young people how to see the world through two sets of eyes, the eyes in their heads and the eyes in their minds.
I'm from the salt of a very specific earth, Detroit — born on the eastside, raised on the westside.
I've survived Hollywood as a soul-rooted artist and continue to do so. In lockstep with that work has been my work as a native son of the community. And now, 30 years later, having directed, taught and consulted countless others worldwide, I'm coming home.
In the spirit of legendary retro-mobile services like Swimmobile and Bookmobile, my charge is to bring elevated filmmaking to Detroit.
I believe we can impact literacy, emotional intelligence, critical thinking, problem solving, and collaborative skills through the language of the 21st century: visual narrative storytelling.
"There are countless 'Ones' in the unexplored matrix of communities where I grew up. I feel compelled to go back into these communities, my communities, and locate every single 'One' we can find."
How Film Skoolie works
Awareness Before Craft turns mobile devices into tools of authorship by developing the native intelligence and untapped genius of our youth.
The Ones
Upon acceptance to the program, high school youth are anointed the Ones. They work in small filmmaking teams guided by the organizing principle of Awareness Before Craft. We turn mobile devices into tools of authorship, with students learning to see with two sets of eyes, the ones in their heads and the ones in their minds. Each team makes three short films per month-long residency.
Filmmakers-in-Residence
Filmmakers-in-Residence are recent film school graduates who serve as Teaching Artists for the Ones. They spend 1–2 months guiding the Ones while completing their own feature-length screenplays, with a staged reading of their work at the year-end festival, introducing them to the indie filmmaking community.
Neighborhood Activation / Block Party
The Neighborhood Activation / Block Party closes each month-long residency and brings out the entire community, with a gathering of activities hosted by partner organizations and a screening of the films created by the Ones from that community. Each year culminates in a citywide festival at The Aretha Amphitheatre.
7 months. 7 neighborhoods. One city.
Each stop, a new cohort of young filmmakers waiting to be found.
What one year produces
- Youth move from compulsion to craft, with competitive portfolios
- Emerging filmmakers supported at the critical early-career stage
- Neighborhoods activated through free public screenings of their own youth's films
kA'RAMUU (pronounced kah-rah-moo) kUSH is a distinguished filmmaker who writes, directs, and acts, with work spanning cinema, theatre, and the classroom. Born and raised in Detroit, he made the journey from high school dropout to college professor — a lifelong commitment to growth as praxis. His artistic lineage was shaped through the mentorship of Sir Sidney Poitier, John Singleton, and Woodie King Jr.
He earned his MFA in Theatre Directing at Sarah Lawrence College and his MFA in Filmmaking at AFI Conservatory. His work has screened at Cannes, Sundance, Tribeca, ABFF, and beyond, with broadcast credits on CBS, BET, HBO, and Cinemax. He is a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
He led Arts in Education programming at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, and at LA Bridges in South Central Los Angeles. He taught for a decade at Howard University and other institutions. He currently serves as Associate Professor and Industry Liaison at Pace University's Sands College of Performing Arts.
Somewhere in the D, the One is waiting.
Every dollar invested in Film Skoolie is a dollar invested in the story of a Detroit child who must be seen, heard and found. It is a dollar invested in a mentor arriving with the keys to accessibility in a neighborhood that's been waiting. It is a dollar invested in community gathered to celebrate their children, watching them explore and express their latent genius through visual storytelling.
Detroit is where we begin...
Get in touch
Whether you're a potential partner, donor, educator, or community member, we look forward to connecting with family we have yet to know.
Partners
Film Skoolie is grateful to the organizations helping make space for Detroit's next generation of filmmakers.
