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THE FILM
Why "Veils, Requiem for Trayvon?"
​Seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin’s 2012 murder garnered international attention for its’ senselessness.As the sensational trial of his killer played out on live television, most were left with more questions than answers:
Did we really live in a country where walking down the street as a Black person was considered justification for cold-blooded murder?
How could we reconcile the rise of the first Black President with the unrelenting attacks on Black bodies we witnessed each day in communities across the country?
Had we not left the brutal legacy of lynching in the 20th century?
How was Trayvon’s murder connected to the continuing cycle of brutality waged against Black men in America who are targeted while being painted as the aggressor?
02
Our Background
The process
“Veils, Requiem for Trayvon” was first developed as a play and presented in theatre festivals in Washington, DC and New York City before large scale production were produced to standing room audiences in Washington, DC and Los Angeles. The new film, based on the play, seeks to secure a wider viewing audience that ensures that the urgent history it highlights is available for audiences to experience. Making it accessible for young people is of particular import.
Juxtaposing the trauma of Trayvon Martin’s murder with the grief, courage and triumph of the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s in a way that engages audiences of all ages is “Veils” superpower. As the leaders and foot soldiers of the movement age into legend, the film is truly a legacy project.
We share a collective responsibility to preserve the stories of sacrifice and success with the generations that follow us. The imperative that we do so is exacerbated by the widening attacks on teaching Black history in schools and the propagation of the belief that such history has no place in schools.
Supported by educational resources and based on the actual events that shaped the Civil Rights Movement, “Veils” will educate and entertain on this important topic for at least a generation.
“Veils, Requiem for Trayvon” is a visual, musical, storytelling masterpiece. The artful cinematography and dynamic editing by Dré Strong is a full circle moment because the movie’s director, Courtney Baker-Oliver, was Dré’s high school drama teacher at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC. Most of the cast and crew attended Howard University and came together to create a movie now touted as a Black Lives Matter “Hamilton”. “Veils, Requiem for Trayvon” is impeccably cast with Broadway and music industry vocal stand outs.
The innovative use of AI imagery catapults this cinematic play into a groundbreaking film. Stirring music and classic historical vignettes leave viewers transformed in the film’s wise message of overcoming grief without forgetting the loss, revealing the strength in women of faith and ultimately understanding the ceaseless protective energy our fallen Ancestors continue to reign in our lives.
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THE STORY
Sybrina’s teenaged son, Trayvon, has been brutally murdered by a self-appointed neighborhood watchman as he was walking home from a convenience store. As vigils are held across the country calling for justice for her son, Sybrina is paralyzed with grief.
On the morning of Trayvon’s funeral, Sybrina is gifted a veil by a well-meaning supporter, but she can’t bring herself to accept it. Acceptance of the mourning attire would mean accepting the reality that she has now joined the lost list of those who have lost their children to violence, and too soon.
After a fraught discussion with her ex, Trayvon’s father, Sybrina is visited (A Christmas Carol style) by Yemaya, the celebrated African orisha of mothers and children. Yemaya takes Sybrina on an unforgettable journey through the Civil Rights Movement, urging Sybrina to honor the legacy of her son by telling his story.
Yemaya takes Sybrina through seminal moments in Black history making parallels between Sybrina’s tragic loss and the loss of so many others. From Mamie Till, Myrlie Evers, the mothers of the Four Little Girls killed in the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church and others, Sybrina draws strength; ultimately mustering the courage to tell her son’s story on the witness stand.