This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:17] Tonya Pinkins: Now, do you all do you all ever get to physically be in the same space with each other in COVID? Or no? You're waiting until uh I haven't seen Chris in a while. Uh in January, hopefully, uh we'll we'll be in the same physical space. Um, but I haven't seen Chris about a year in person. About a year, right, Chris?

[0:37] Christopher Everett: Yeah, the last year we did a um we did a screening of As an Act of Protest in New York at the People's Forum. And uh Chris came up for that. Right, right. Came up for that. And then a few months later, you know, COVID hit. And so yeah, yeah. Doing all these Zoom meetings and Zoom calls and it's been weird, Tonya.

[0:58] Tonya Pinkins: Yeah, it's definitely been weird. So on a scale from one to ten, Chris, first, what is the daily level of uh concern that you have to have in order to leave your house every day and come home safely? Scale of one to ten.

[1:21] Christopher Everett: I would say I would say like five. Four. Yeah, I'll say five.

[1:29] Tonya Pinkins: How about you, Dennis?

[1:30] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Probably now because it's spiking up again in New York, probably around a seven or eight. It's getting pretty uh uh weird again now, but I I have to take a lot of cabs, Ubers now, and and and and and things if I have to leave uh the the house. Um the trains, Tonya, believe it or not, are packed. You know, the trains are packed, Tonya. Now, you know, that could mean many things that people gotta work. Some people have to work, but Tonya, it's getting bad. So that's where I am. I I say, geez, yeah, my concern is going up again because now I realize, damn. You know, we're we're heading into the the fall, and you know, the winter, the season, it's already getting cold in New York, and the trend and COVID is already spiked. Already spiking. I mean so I believe the second civil war has already begun that MSM hasn't claimed it, but I believe the shots have already been fired and it's done. What are your thoughts about that?

[2:39] Christopher Everett: Uh I'll I'll go first. Yeah, I think it has. Um, I'm actually been filming. Yeah, we've been in it. Yeah, uh literally filming it. Yeah, I've been uh filming some stuff for Wilmington on Fire, chapter two, and it's really uh a look at Wilmington, you know, over a hundred years later, and just the folks in Wilmington who are trying to reverse those effects of the 1898 massacre. And I went to a Trump rally last month. They had a Trump rally um in Wilmington. I said, you know what, let me go out here and do some filming and just see what the deal is. Oh lord. Yeah, me and my camera guy who went there because like Trump came to town, he came to Wilmington because you need to see the builders. Yeah, they uh they named uh Wilmington like a World War II city or something like that.

So he had to come to speak, and so they had this big trunk rally, you know. His supporters were out there, thousands of people. First of all, no one had any mask on but me and my camera guy, right? And just just the energy out there and stuff and the excitement for this guy, and we interviewed like 10 people. There was one brother out there we interviewed. So what didn't he say things on? Oh, he was like, um, he was like, he doesn't see racism. He was raised by a white man. Um people are talking about. And Trump is the best president we've ever had. That's what he said. Um, other people were just saying that Trump is the best president ever. He's shaking up the system. He's for the little guy.

They um the liberal media is making up everything. It was wild, you know, and really, but it scared me because of the amount of some people that support him. It's just like a hidden support. I even have people in my own family, like four of my uncles, they support him, or their brothers. And it's like why?

[4:21] Tonya Pinkins: Yeah.

[4:22] Christopher Everett: This is this is what they say. Now they say they're tired of the left, they're tired of the liberal agenda. See, this is the problem. Um, and they just feel like they just feel like they just want to just buck the system and and and break the whole. You got a lot of people that just wanted just the whole system to fail and collapse. And they feel like that's the best way to start everything over. And so Trump, that's what scares me because he has a lot of hidden support that can see a lot of folks scared to say they support him.

[4:49] Tonya Pinkins: Right.

[4:50] Christopher Everett: I I agree with him. When they get their voting booth, they're gonna they're gonna probably vote for him. And that's what really scares me, is just going. Yeah, and so that's what really scares me. And yeah, it's it's something really going on right now. And I think we're gonna start seeing more right after this election.

[5:06] Tonya Pinkins: Definitely.

[5:07] Christopher Everett: I agree with you. I agree with you, Chris.

[5:09] Tonya Pinkins: I agree with you as well.

[5:11] Christopher Everett: I agree with you as well. And I, you know, I don't know if you guys have watched some of these documentaries, The Social Dilemma or Agents of Chaos, which really talk about how this algorithm and the social media is feeding people very um specifically designed and delivered doses of messages to get them to believe the things you say that they're believing.

[5:37] Tonya Pinkins: Yeah, yeah. It's crazy.

[5:39] Christopher Everett: Yeah, um, I heard about that film, The Social Dilemma. I gotta check it out. But uh, it's right on you right on the money with it. Um, like I said, like even my own uncles that that talk this stuff. And I'm like, man, where first of all, where do you hear this from? You know, and then so you know, they're hearing it from everywhere, like you know, Facebook, you know, they have those little clickbait articles, you know, those sites on it and you know they just tell you, but it's very similar to what happened in 1898, because even the media back then, the newspapers, they use those same tricks because a lot of people were illiterate back then. And so what the newspaper guys would do, they'd create these fake news headlines to make it, you know, scare.

Even back then. Right back then, right to clickbait articles. And even the one guy who owned the Raleigh News and Observer, who was the big the biggest newspaper in North Carolina back then, he even admitted later on in life before he died that a lot of stuff he put out there, he just made it up because he was trying to sell papers and also promote the the white supremacy agenda that led to the 1898 massacre. So it's like, and that's that's why I like doing documentaries on history, because it's really not just to us to look at history, but to learn from it and learn not to fall for those same mistakes again.

[6:54] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I don't know how we don't fall for them when we all get to curate our own version of reality.

[7:02] Christopher Everett: Right.

[7:03] Tonya Pinkins: Right.

[7:04] Christopher Everett: Yeah, yeah. I mean, we can't agree on reaction.

[7:08] Tonya Pinkins: Right now.

[7:08] Christopher Everett: Right, exactly. Yeah, yeah. Think about that.

[7:12] Tonya Pinkins: Right.

[7:13] Christopher Everett: That's yeah. And that way they've already won. Whatever that is, the empire, whatever you want to say. But and that that makes me angry. That gives me great anxiety, just from what you said. Because that's really the problem. And um you can't even argue with people intelligently about that. And I also wonder so when the system is broken and there's nothing, is everybody just gonna be happy that nobody has anything? That you know, right now we're in a point where we're going into winter, people don't have health care, they don't have unemployment insurance, they don't have jobs. Um we're gonna see a lot of deaths that will be COVID adjacent because of poverty.

[8:03] Christopher Everett: Right.

[8:05] Tonya Pinkins: Right, yeah.

[8:07] Christopher Everett: Yeah, it's it's it's serious. And I know uh, you know, anytime you know this country goes through like you know, hardships or down times, you know, our people take the most of it, you know what I'm saying? And I know when COVID hit a few months right after that, they talked about all the black businesses that were lost, yeah. Um, and then you know we haven't seen anything yet, because it's just it's only gonna get worse with businesses, unemployment, and everything. A lot of times our people usually take take the most of it out of all this stuff, and um this this is bad, and that's why I understand, yeah.

[8:44] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Well, some of our people just won't wake up, you know. I don't I don't get it, but hopefully, you know, us as artists, you know, we have to continue to do what we do, um, and just try to give our people some type of chance. And I think that's what the commitment, me and Dennis and folks like yourself as well, as artists to try to do what we can do to open up, you know, the minds of our folks.

[9:07] Christopher Everett: How are we gonna do it? Hey, continue to do this media, you know, like your platforms, you know, even though like when I did Wilmington on Fire, you know, I'm just a dude from a small town in North Carolina, you know what I'm saying? I ain't had no connection with Hollywood, New York, none, you know, from a place called Lawrence.

[9:23] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Exactly, which is good.

[9:24] Christopher Everett: That's that's the that's how you really do it. Yeah, yeah. I think we all can just do a little something, you know what I'm saying? Like I said, you know what? I'm not a part of Hollywood, I don't know anyone in Hollywood. But I think telling this story can can help make some type of dent. You know what I'm saying? And I think we all can just do something to keep cracking at that dent of white supremacy in this system. You know, I think a lot of times people feel like if they don't do nothing big scale, or if they're not a LeBron James or Spike Lee or whoever, some big scale person that they can't really make a difference. But I think you know, if we just start small, man, it's definitely making a difference in your own home, yes, your own block, your own neighborhood, you know, and just take it like that, and then it'll just expand and grow.

[10:10] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And I think a lot of times we our people are always looking for the big, big impact.

[10:15] Christopher Everett: Yes, I agree.

[10:16] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: If we just keep it small and then just grow it out, I think we'll see a difference.

[10:21] Christopher Everett: And I think you know, this local election is really gonna be important as well, locally.

[10:25] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Also, and I think we gotta really take this local election real serious.

[10:28] Christopher Everett: I agree.

[10:29] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: We gotta get out of the vote, yeah.

[10:31] Christopher Everett: I agree.

[10:31] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I read somewhere that the GOP were putting out fake boxes for dropping off ballots and um that uh you know they were only gonna keep the ballots that were for 45.

[10:48] Christopher Everett: Uh they play dirty, they are willing to play dirty, they don't have any shame about playing dirty.

[10:55] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: No, they have no shame.

[10:56] Christopher Everett: There's sociopaths, you're right.

[10:58] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: But then the left doesn't meet it.

[11:01] Christopher Everett: It still thinks that you can play quote unquote fair in a in a rape game.

[11:07] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And that is what resonates me.

[11:11] Christopher Everett: Right, it does.

[11:12] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: It fascinates me a lot because it's like, are you trying to lose?

[11:12] Christopher Everett: It's like, are you trying to lose?

[11:17] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Yeah, you know, and it's like they had the easy win because you had COVID hit, right?

[11:22] Christopher Everett: And it's like, yo, this is the perfect opportunity to get back on track and win this election all the way through, local level and the presidency.

[11:30] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And it's like you still, it's like I don't get it.

[11:33] Christopher Everett: It's like, are you trying to lose?

[11:34] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: You know what I'm saying? That's what it seems like to me.

[11:37] Christopher Everett: It's like it's like they're trying to lose.

[11:40] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: That's what it seems like sometimes, yeah.

[11:43] Tonya Pinkins: It is so what advice each of you, I mean, I I have a lot of faith in the young people, and you guys are pretty young compared to me.

[11:52] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: What um what advice do you give to the young people that are around you?

[11:58] Christopher Everett: Umigo, you got it.

[12:00] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Um I usually just tell young people now to first of all to not second guess um any of their own inclinations or their own ideas or their own impulses in terms of what they see and how they feel they should react.

[12:24] Christopher Everett: Um I tell a lot of young people too to spend more time if you can.

[12:32] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Like you don't have to know everything, right?

[12:35] Christopher Everett: Like when I was younger, I remember everyone would say, Well, it's impossible for you to know everything.

[12:40] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: So try to hang out with the people who know all the things you don't.

[12:43] Christopher Everett: This way you can you can grow.

[12:47] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I mean, you know, what you don't know, someone else will.

[12:50] Christopher Everett: Um, I do advocate for that uh tremendously.

[12:54] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I mean, I had a wonderful public school arts uh background.

[12:59] Christopher Everett: I had some wonderful teachers um uh growing up.

[13:03] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Um and and there was always somewhere for me as a young person to go and to get involved.

[13:14] Christopher Everett: Um, I mean, I mean like an 18, 19, forget about Juilliard, just even other places.

[13:19] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I don't know if young people today have that amount of support in the sense of really going off and trying something that's new or fresh.

[13:32] Christopher Everett: I think there's a lot of talk about, you know, uh safe spaces now and all this and political correctness and what can't you say and what can you say.

[13:44] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I think young people need to get away from all of that uh uh and and kind of go back a little bit into really what civil rights or human rights is really about, if if they want to do that, if they want to get involved in activism, I think they should really kind of go back a little bit and maybe reread your Angela Davis because the approaches um that some of those people took have nothing to do with sitting in a classroom and bemoaning uh what words are being used and what novel.

[14:17] Christopher Everett: Um that really gets my goat.

[14:19] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: As an artist, that bothers me.

[14:21] Christopher Everett: I don't really care if a white filmmaker is using black people or not.

[14:26] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: It's like I have no, I don't care.

[14:26] Christopher Everett: I don't care.

[14:30] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I care what I am doing.

[14:32] Christopher Everett: I don't, I mean, I care what Chris is doing.

[14:34] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I care what you're doing, Tanya.

[14:36] Christopher Everett: I think we need to be a little bit more conscientious and give each other a little bit more attention.

[14:43] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: So I try to tell young people, don't pay so much attention to pop culture.

[14:49] Christopher Everett: You know, you can watch the Grammys or whatever or the Oscars, but take it with a grain of salt, be a little bit more concerned with what the artist next door is doing.

[15:02] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: That's what I tell young people.

[15:04] Christopher Everett: Because that's your generation.

[15:06] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: We need the artists need to kind of reclaim a little bit and take back a little bit of power.

[15:12] Christopher Everett: Um, I'm very cynical about art in general in the culture because it's all very corporate.

[15:20] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Um Spike Lee's been around forever, God bless him, but I can't stand them.

[15:26] Christopher Everett: And um it's sad, you know, is is he's is you know, we don't need that, you know.

[15:33] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Um, so I really tell a lot of young people to kind of cut the cord a little bit and in some way maybe don't care about what came yesterday.

[15:45] Christopher Everett: Make up something now in the moment.

[15:47] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Um, you know, and and I mean it's would be nice to have a new music.

[15:52] Christopher Everett: I definitely tell young people.

[15:55] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Yeah, I definitely tell young people we didn't do it, you know, your elders didn't get it all right.

[15:59] Christopher Everett: So invent something that's never been before.

[16:03] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Do and don't worry about rules so much.

[16:06] Christopher Everett: There's all this sort of am I doing it the right way?

[16:08] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Is it professional or please you wouldn't have rap, funk, or punk rock if anybody cared about being professional.

[16:16] Christopher Everett: Don't worry about all that.

[16:18] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Find something, you know.

[16:19] Christopher Everett: So but I I have to say that I think that the worry about all of that comes from the fact that even as um much of an illusion it was when I was growing up, and I'm much older than both of you, that worked hard, you could be successful.

[16:35] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I think with technology bombarding young people, they know that failure is a greater probability now.

[16:43] Christopher Everett: Failure, even to be able to make a living that can keep a roof over your head is a greater probability now than anything else.

[16:53] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: So I understand it's taking me time to understand the can the fear, the concern about getting it right.

[17:01] Christopher Everett: But the reality is there is no right that's going to guarantee you safety or a good life.

[17:09] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Yeah, I totally agree.

[17:10] Christopher Everett: I totally agree.

[17:10] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And um, you know, I mentor a lot of uh filmmakers, you know, mentors half the state of North Carolina, I would say.

[17:19] Christopher Everett: You know, I try to do that and I try to expect to produce a lot of you know projects as well.

[17:23] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And I just try to tell them, especially black um filmmakers, you know, embrace independence, you know, use it to your advantage.

[17:30] Christopher Everett: Um, and really learn how to really utilize the internet to your advantage as well.

[17:36] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And you know, start thinking outside the box, you know.

[17:38] Christopher Everett: You know, it's you know, in just like there's really not a real way to make a film, you know, you really don't you can break all the rules to even screen and promote your film as well.

[17:49] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Well, I'm gonna find out how to do it.

[17:51] Christopher Everett: So I always try to tell them to really think outside of the system in regards to screening and promoting, you know, your your film projects, you know.

[18:00] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And yeah, hit me up.

[18:02] Christopher Everett: That's it, hit him up.

[18:04] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Chris knows all, listen, he's he's I call Chris, he's like the Roger Corman of the Black Independent New Wave.

[18:13] Christopher Everett: I'm serious.

[18:14] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: He he knows how to take a dollar and stretch it.

[18:18] Christopher Everett: He goes for quality, he does not believe in spending excessive amounts of money for nonsense.

[18:24] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Uh he's a believer in all the artists he supports.

[18:28] Christopher Everett: Um, and in my 40 years on this planet, I've not had someone like Chris.

[18:33] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: I wish I knew Chris when I was doing theater, because he's so also invested in in all the artists that he works with, which is very rare.

[18:42] Christopher Everett: And um, and he has an old soul, quite frankly.

[18:46] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: So and that helps.

[18:47] Christopher Everett: And I and you need that.

[18:49] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And he's a wonder, Tanya, on the internet.

[18:52] Christopher Everett: I mean, he's a one.

[18:53] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: He because innately, innately though.

[18:55] Christopher Everett: No one taught this to Chris.

[18:56] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Chris innately knows how to use how to use the internet.

[19:00] Christopher Everett: It was uh how I kind of got this way was just like I said, growing in growing up in a small town, and it forced me to because I wasn't in New York or LA or these bigger places.

[19:10] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: So I say, I gotta figure this internet thing out because I'm in a small market in a small town.

[19:16] Christopher Everett: And I just kind of just learn things on my own, you know.

[19:18] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: You know what I'm saying?

[19:19] Christopher Everett: Also just reaching out to folks, you know, like people will be surprised.

[19:24] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Yeah, people would be surprised if you just reach out to somebody, all they're gonna say is you or all they're gonna say is yes or no.

[19:31] Christopher Everett: You know what I'm saying?

[19:32] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: So I've been fortunate enough to just email folks um who worked in Hollywood or eventually worked in Hollywood to get their advice on a lot of things.

[19:41] Christopher Everett: And there's plenty of podcasts out here, books, they have just a wealth of free information.

[19:47] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Some of the stuff you can't use, but some of the stuff you can kind of tailor and adapt to to your film or your style of filmmaking, you know what I'm saying?

[19:57] Christopher Everett: And it's really just a lot of trial and error as well.

[19:59] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: And it's just really you just gotta just start experimenting around, you know, and really find that audience.

[20:06] Christopher Everett: And once you find your audience, you just go right to them. And just the success, the luck that I've had over the years with my audience, it's like they're invested, you know. Like any project I come out now supporting, they ride with it, you know, and that's what you want. Because one guy, um Ryan Leslie, he created this app called the Super Phone, and because he really wanted to connect with his audience, and he tells independent artists, whether they're musicians, filmmakers, tells him all the time. He said, What you need to focus on getting is getting a thousand supporters, a thousand fans that support you to at least spend ten dollars a month with you, whether it's your film, your music, your merchandise, your shows, or whatever.

He said, if you can do that at the minimum, a thousand people that are going to spend at least ten dollars a month with you, that's over 120,000 a year. You good, you know what I'm saying? He said, So it's just all a numbers game, and that's what I've been just really striving to strive for is getting to that number. And if I can do that, you know, I can be really a true, true independent artist. And then a lot of times when you're doing those type of numbers, that's when Hollywood wants to start playing ball with you somewhat, and you can really do it on your terms when you ain't got to do like no BS or nothing. You know what I'm saying? So I actually use it.

[21:30] Christopher Everett: Well, the super phone is pretty much like he started it. When did he start? He started about six years ago. And he had it in the beta stage. I don't know what the price is now because I came in early. It was like me and about a couple hundred other people. The late Nipsey Hustle, he was one of them. Right. Um, and it's really a way where it's not your real phone, but it's a phone app that's connected to your cell phone where you can give people out your phone number and say, hey, if you ever want to hit me up, just send this, send me a text. And a lot of times when you're a so-called celebrity, a well-known person, everyone wants to hit up their favorite artist, you know, right? And so once they hit you up through the sale, it sends you another link saying, Hey, well, this is Christopher Everett.

Thanks for reaching out. Put your number in my phone book with this link. The link you hit the link, you put in your name, your social media, all that stuff, and now you're in my phone book. So, like whenever I go to like Dennis, for example, if he's in my super phone, he's in New York. So, whenever I do a show or something in New York, I can reach out to Dennis personally, send him a text. Hey, what's up, Dennis? This is Chris. I'm showing Wilmington on Fire in New York on October 30th. Here's a link for the tickets. You know, he's a fan, so he's probably gonna hit that link. And also, I can track like who all buys what from me. Who else is doing right. So it gives me a track, I can track all my super fans.

So like if Dennis has spent like 200 or 500 this year on me, I can look that up. I got his birthday, so I can send him a special message for his birthday. I can send him like a discount, yeah, all that stuff. So I've been using it for about five years now. Like I said, luckily, because I was a fan of Ryan. That's pretty good. And like I said, I'm always, yeah.

[23:16] Christopher Everett: Yeah, so um, you know, I've always, and that's why I said I always try to stay what's going on. And it was unheard of when he did it six years ago. Like I said, Nipsey Hustle. That's when I first heard about Nipsey Hustle was when he had was doing it. I said, Man, I gotta get on to this. You know, then I'm gonna tell people about it. They thought I was crazy. I was like, but then one of the main reasons why I did it is when I was doing these screenings for Wilmington on Fire, I was getting like 500 people to a thousand people to come to the screen, but it was hard to get people email information because you have the sheet out there, everyone's not gonna sign the sign-up sheet, or sometimes you can't even read the handwriting a lot of time.

So I said, you know what? Let me go ahead and get this super phone thing. So I had I know one screen, I had like five people. And I said, you know, hey everyone, thanks for coming to the screen tonight. I appreciate it for a special treat for you coming out to check out the film. But we had like a free promotional soundtrack that we had out there, and so I pretty much told everybody to text my number and you'll get a free download of the soundtrack. So you can set it up your mass text to go out however you want it. So I set it up for when people sign up for the super phone, they'll get the link to download the soundtrack plus the link to buy the film as well on DVD, just in case they didn't buy it after the screening, and so that way I was able to get like a whole bunch of email contacts, their cell phones, everything. So whenever I come back to that town or city again, I can just reach out to those same folks, you know, whether whatever type of event or special we got going on.

[24:46] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: It's just that sounds like a dope. It's directress right there. But yeah, we can talk more about it, you know. We'll talk more about it. I definitely will hit you up about that. So I want to ask you the each question as we wrap up. Can you tell me something that was a real uh a setback in your life or you experienced it as that turned out to be a really great thing? That it when it happened, you thought it was a bad thing, but in hindsight, it was a great thing.

[25:17] Christopher Everett: I would I go. Um I would say when I when I got laid off from my job in in Atlanta, Georgia in 2010. And I thought I was like, man, what what when I'm gonna be able to do, I gotta move back to North Carolina now because I had lost my apartment, and it was just uh the economy was real tough around that time too. And but the thing is is that that's when I came up with the idea to do Wilmington on Fire. Um that's what led me to actually eventually do that film and and the rest is history. So at the time I thought the end of the world was happening. Yeah, you know, of course, and but eventually, but it turned it out to be a huge blessing as well. Nice.

[26:03] Tonya Pinkins: And you, Dennis?

[26:04] Dennis Leroy Kangalee: Um, I would probably say um I back somewhere around the mid-90s. Um I was suffering terribly from depression. Um I'm not ashamed to say that they I'm I'm bipolar. So they they they they're I'm out of depressive. Um I had spent maybe two weeks when I was quite young, maybe 19, God, uh, at Payne Whitney Mental Health Clinic uh in New York, because they had a an arrangement with Juilliard students. So you know because they were all going crazy. Um but I thought, wow, I don't know what's happened to me. Um going through that though, um I I kind of did a whole sort of reassessment of myself as a very young artist, and then decided then that I would I would direct. I knew then that I would probably leave school and and form my own theater company.

It was weird. It was like even even though I was severely, because I just thought it was a clinical depression, um, and it was a very scary time. Um it kind of changed my whole outlook for some reason in terms of how I was then approaching everything, um hitting that sort of spiritual ground zero, you know, hitting that that that that kind of place. Um so that was something now. I look back and I realize, and I've had numerous moments like that in my life, but that was the first time where I thought, okay, that's something now I'm definitely very, very uh uh lucky to have had. I mean, I I appreciate that humbling experience because I never would have would have uh had the audacity, I think, to to have uh become the artist that I tried to be. So that was it, yeah.

[28:09] Tonya Pinkins: Thank you. Thank you both. Um let us know right now. Are there any upcoming screenings of Wilmington on Fire or As an Act of Protest?

[28:19] Christopher Everett: Well, As an Act of Protest, um, that's coming out. People can watch that digitally on Vimeo on Demand October 30th, October 30th. So people can, the whole world can watch it together. October 30th on Vimeo on Demand. Wilmington on Fire. Um, we have a couple of events for that. Um, Quelle A TV. We're doing a uh live stream with Quela TV on November 10th, the actual anniversary of the 1898 Massacre. So we're doing that on Quela TV. If people already um have a subscription, check it out. If you don't have a subscription, you can still sign up at Quela.tv to check that out November 10th at 7 o'clock. And you can also watch Wilmington on Fire whenever you want on Amazon Prime as well. I'm gonna try to see if we can get this podcast out before that date so um people can catch that.

[29:11] Tonya Pinkins: I want to thank Christopher and Dennis for uh spending time with me today. Um my name is Tonya Pinkins, and you've been listening to You Can't SAY THAT on the Broadway Podcast Network. Welcome you don't say no when you meet no thanks for listening to You Can't SAY THAT, the show Where You Can. I'm Tonya Pinkins. This is part of the Broadway Podcast Network, produced by Dori Berinstein and Alan Seales, edited by Derek Gunther, used by Anthony Norman, available wherever you get your podcast. And visit me on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram, and let me know what you'd like to hear me talk about. For more information, visit bpn.fm forward slash YCST. It's not a gift if you don't give it.