October 9, 2024 • 30 mins
Two-time Emmy and three-time NAACP Image Award-winning television Executive Producer Rushion McDonald interviewed Kathleen Bertrand.
Kathleen Bertrand began talking in 2009 about a new film festival to attract people of color to Atlanta’s growing film industry. From a discussion with her then CEO William Pate at the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau, to talks with film enthusiasts and potential film partners, Bertrand began to assemble the team and resources needed to launch what was to become BronzeLens Film Festival, a non-profit organization. While everybody knew about Tyler Perry’s Atlanta-based empire, Bertrand and her colleagues created a platform for broader engagement in the industry for people of color and did so in a way that showcased Atlanta and its history and culture.
Under Bertrand’s visionary leadership as executive producer, BronzeLens has grown to receive attention and accolades from across the country and around the world. It is a charter member of ARRAY (formerly AFFRM), the film distribution network founded by producer/director Ava DuVernay in 2011. BronzeLens has been mentioned in articles about film diversity in publications such as the New York Times, the LA Times, Atlanta Magazine, Oz Magazine, and Ebony Magazine. In late 2016, the festival was named as an Academy Award Qualifying Film Festival for the Short Film Award. This tremendous honor is one of only 3 such designations in the country for film festivals that support the work of people of color. In its most recent film season, the festival received film submissions from 59 countries around the world. BronzeLens has received two “Best of Atlanta” Awards from Atlanta Magazine: “Best Showcase for New Filmmakers,” and “Best Place to Break into the Film Industry.”
Kathleen has received numerous awards for her work with BronzeLens. In 2016, she was given the Georgia Highlight Award, as part of the annual Georgia Film Gala. In 2018, she received the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from her alma mater Spelman College, which honored her careers in both hospitality and the film industry. Additionally, in 2018, she was inducted into the Atlanta Hospitality Hall of Fame, which also honored her dual careers in film and in hospitality. In 2019, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms presented Bertrand with the City of Atlanta’s highest honor – The Phoenix Award. Recent honors include the 2023 Image Award presented by Atlanta Film Society, the Synergy Award from African American Film Critics Association and being recognized by Georgia Entertainment Magazine as one of “200 Most Influential of Georgia’s Creative Industries.”
Company Description *
BronzeLens Film Festival of Atlanta, Georgia is a non-profit organization, founded in 2009, that is dedicated to bringing national and worldwide attention to Atlanta as a center for film and film production for people of color. The mission of the BronzeLens Film Festival of Atlanta, Georgia is two fold: to promote Atlanta as the new film mecca for people of color; and to showcase films and provide networking opportunities that will develop the next generation of filmmakers.
#AMI
#BEST
#SHMS
#STRAW
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Welcome to the show. I am Rashan McDonald, the host
of Money Making Conversations Masterclass, where we encourage people to
stop reading other people's success stories and start planning their own.
Listen up as I interview entrepreneurs from around the country,
talk to celebrities and ask them how they are running
their companies, and speak with nod profits who are making
(00:25):
a difference in their local communities. Now, sit back and
listen as we unlock the secrets to their success on
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Hi, I'm Rashan MacDonald. I host
the weekly Money Making Conversation Masterclass show. The interviews and
information that business show provides off for everyone. Like I
tell you all the time, it's time to start reading
(00:47):
other people's success stories and start living your own. My
guest is a visionary. She's the founder of the Bronze
Lands Film Festival, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Over the last
fifteen years, Bronze Lands has promoted the work of independent
filmmakers of color from Atlanta, the Southeast region, the nation,
and the world. This film festival vised networking opportunities that
(01:07):
would develop the next generation of filmmakers. Now let's hear
the founder. Please welco with the Money Making Conversation Masterclass,
Kathleen Bertrand how you doing, my friend, I'm.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Wonderful so delighted to talk to you anytime.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Well, first of all, what is my brief story and
the intro I mentioned what the Bronze Lens Film Festival represent.
What is the mission of the Bronze Lens Film Festival
based in Atlanta, Georgia.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
We have always wanted to be this platform for connecting
filmmakers of color. We wanted that to happen in this
place called Atlanta, Georgia because at the time that we started,
Georgia was really rising on the scene as a major
(01:59):
production site in competition with New York and Hollywood. And
now it just depends on which month of the year
one of them. One of those three is either number
one or number two, either Georgia, New York or California
in film and television production. Our reason for being starting
(02:23):
this platform is to make sure that people that looks
like me were included in whatever the process might be.
Is this new to Atlanta? If it is, how do
I get in? How can I become a part of it?
As if I'm a creator? How do I get my
work shown, or maybe I don't know that I want
(02:44):
to be a creator, but I have a great story.
What are the tools that I need to tell my
story or to tell the stories that I have been
thinking about. So with all of those things, Bronze Lens
wanted to be that pivot point for people to say, Hey,
me too, I can do this kind of work, or
(03:04):
I'm interested in this kind of work and why not Atlanta.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
The event starts August twenty first and runs through August
twenty fifth. Can the everyday layman attend these these greetings?
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Absolutely? We have prices and attractions and interest for everyone.
The film prices are the general cost of a film
fifteen dollars, but if you come and you want to
see a group of short films, you may see five
(03:40):
or six films at one time, one after the other,
for that same fifteen dollars. So the website breaks it
down with the different blocks that we have. But the
average person would really enjoy finding out the various stories
that we have have to tell, and you find yourself
(04:02):
in these stories. In addition to that, every year we
have programming that is open at no charge, and this
happens on Sunday, the twenty fifth, because we have our
Cinema and Social Justice Sunday screenings. We always pick at
least two films that really reflect our journey or our
(04:27):
struggle when it comes to social justice, and nothing really
tells those stories better than seeing them on film, seeing
them on a big screen, and so we do that
every year since we've started. We make Cinema and Social
Justice Sunday open to the public.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Then you have the Cinema and Social Justice Sunday, which,
like you said, all those will be screened at to
Tara Atlanta Theater. But it's part of your DNA. Why
is it so important for Bronze Land Bronze Lenz Film
Festival to feature these type of independent and sometimes commercial productions.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
Yes, Bronze Lens Film Festival has from its beginning recognized
the fact that we are Atlanta born and intricate, and
all woven into the Atlanta DNA is the story of
civil rights and the civil rights movement. Atlanta has often
(05:29):
been called the cradle of civil rights, and so how
better to stamp our identity and how better to make
something unique that is particular to Atlanta than a day
that honors those films that uplift, that talk about that
(05:54):
educate around the area of social justice and human rights.
We had to me it was like a no brainer.
We have to do this. This is what Atlanta is
about because we do have people that walk among us legends,
so to speak, the late Congressman John Lewis, Martin Luther
(06:15):
King Junior, of course, the late Joseph Lowery, c T. Vivian,
and still among us Andrew Young and Zernona Clayton. In fact,
last year, Bronze Lens began the Andrew J. Young Cinema
and Social Justice Award, and that is going to one
(06:36):
of those films. I can't say, but we wanted to
do something that honored Andrew Young. Did you know that
he was a filmmaker, a documentarian. Yes, he has won
Emmys for films that he has created, and so what
better way to honor Andy than to have an award
(06:58):
that really recognizes his skill and talent as a documentarian
but also recognizes the vast work that he has done
in this area of human rights. And so that's what
that Sunday means to us and why it's a significant
part of our programming. Sunday Evening when we're at the
(07:19):
Ray Charles Performing Arts Center at Morehouse College. We'll get
a chance to award all of the top filmmakers in
the various categories of films that we have. So not
only will someone receive that Andrew J. Young Award, but
we will also honor the best Short Documentary, the Best Documentary,
(07:41):
the short film, the feature film, the web series, the
dance video, the music video, Best Actor, Best Actress. All
of those are awards that will come that night at
the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Right. You know, it's really important when you hear something
like this because everybody has a bright idea. Kathleen, Okay, everybody,
I want to do this. I have dream. How did
you take this idea and made in a reality? The
Bronze Lands Film Festival and we've come back, We're going
to really get into detail a lot of the celebrity
names who are associated with a lot of the projects
(08:19):
that are being produced and presented. But how did this
idea come to you? And then how did you eventually execute?
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Please don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with more
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Welcome back to the Money Making
Conversations Masterclass. Hosted by Rashaan McDonald. Money Making Conversations Masterclass
(08:46):
continues online at Moneymakingconversations dot com and follow money Making
Conversations Masterclass on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
The idea came to me from the CEO at the
Atlanta Convention in Visitors Bureau, where I was vice president,
maybe I was senior vice president at that time. I
had a long career with the Convention in Visitors Bureau,
and my area was diversity marketing, making sure that people
(09:21):
outside of Atlanta knew all of the greatness that this
city had and why this city could handle their meeting
or their conference or anything like their tour or anything
like that. So diversity marketing was my area. The new
person in charge was a gentleman by the name of
William Pate. He had just started in the role, and
(09:43):
he had a meeting and encouraged me to come to
a meeting in his office and he asked me why
didn't Atlanta have something like a Sun Dance for the
African American community. He says, When I go out to
I noticed that everybody's talking about Sun Dancer. Everybody's talking
(10:05):
about what they're doing or where they're going, and you
see people on the streets, and he says, why doesn't
Atlanta have something like that? Because his fallback was, you know,
after all, we have Tyler Perry Studios here and it
just seems like, you know, this community should have more.
So I took his words. His words were, why don't
you see what you can do with that? That was
(10:27):
my direction that morning, and so I spent that was
two thousand and eight, And so I spent the early
part of two thousand and nine doing research, really looking
into what were film festivals in other places for people
of color, specifically what did they do, who came, why
(10:48):
did they come? And then I began to talk to
the community here because there were some small film festivals
but nothing really that it didn't press, didn't get airtime,
no advertising, just if you knew you knew kind of events.
And I wanted to do something bigger. So I started
(11:12):
talking to those people. And then I called on a
friend that I had known that you had a chance
to meet from my days at Spelman College, Cheryl Gripper,
who at that time was with the eleven o'live television
as vice president of Community Affairs. And Cheryl then and
she was also had a Master's in film and she
(11:36):
called on a good friend of hers who worked with her,
and that friend was Dedre McDonald who is our current
and was then artistic director. And Dedre is an Emmy
Award winning producer. But not only that, she was an
instructor in the area of film production at Clark Atlanta University.
(12:00):
And so, with those ladies giving input expanding the vision,
Bronze Lens began and had our first presentation in two
thousand and nine. Now this is where friends of friends
are important. Remember I'm at the Convention and Visitors Bureau,
(12:21):
and the Convention and Visitors Bureau had a board of directors.
One of the persons on the board of directors was
with Turner Network, and she took a liking to me,
as people would say, and gave me the opportunity to
make a presentation about Bronze Lens to the Turner family.
(12:41):
So at that time that included Turner Network, Television, Turner Classics,
the Cartoon Network, the Super Channel, TBS, all of that.
All of those people were actually in the room when
we see at CNN. Of course, when we made our
first presentation and they gave us their feedback, they thought
(13:06):
it was a good idea for Atlanta, and then the
feedback after the meeting was that they didn't like the name.
The name that we presented was the Bronze Jubilee Film Festival,
and that was really based on an event that Cheryl
had produced in some years previous that was an awards
(13:29):
show honoring great people in the community. But the people
at Turner just didn't like that name for this event.
And so my contact there at Turner said, well, I
know a naming company. I had never heard of a
naming company before. We shine okay, like people get paid
(13:51):
to name things, Yes, they do, and she knew a
naming company. So she said, let me have them talk
to you. Let's see if we can come up with
just a better name. And so I sat down with
the naming company. Cheryl sat down with them as well,
and we just gave that broad vision of what we
thought Bronze Lens, well, what we thought the film festival
(14:14):
could look like, and about it was Bronze Jubilee, also
known as looking for another name. So they came back
about four about four six weeks later, and the name
was Bronze Lens. They actually had about six names on
(14:34):
a page, but I can tell you when I saw
Bronze Lens, I don't remember seeing anything else on the
page because just nothing struck me like that. The coloration
of it, so to speak, gave us a broad reach
to bronze people, people of color, across the diet around
(14:56):
the world, and then the lens just talked about everything
we did, both in front of and behind the lens.
That was exactly who we were. So that's where the
name came from in that process. And our first festival
was twenty ten. We had twenty three films. Will Packer
(15:19):
came by, Rob Hardy made us a video that we
put on our website. We got a welcome message from
the Mayor of Atlanta, Cassim Reid, and that's how we
launched Bron's Lens under the guys of the Atlanta Convention
and Visitors Bureau. It really was the incubator for what
(15:42):
we were doing. But the festival has always been a
separate five oh one C three organization with its own
bank accounts, et cetera, et cetera. The film that you
brought to Bron's Lens was the Steve Harvey film.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
Well, you know that's from Bronze Jubilee now it's Bronze
Lynz Film Festival. Now some of the celebrity names associated
with some of the production as producers Jamie Fox, Jamie Lee, Curtis, Yes,
Morris Chestnut, civil rights attorney Ben Krump, each producer of
(16:19):
a film called How to Sue the Klan That is
so typical of attorney being Crump, very good friend of mine. Now,
how do these films get selected and how they will submitted?
Because you know you want the big names associated with
that's what brings the media that week, gets people excited
about seeing the projects when you see and hear about
the Jamie Fox film A, Ben Krump, a Jamie Lee Curtis,
(16:42):
Debora Riley Draper, Morris Chestnut. But how do they get submitted?
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Well, we have a submissions process that opens each year
in October. We broadcast that both through our social media
as well as with a newsletter that we send out
to filmmakers both current and previous, in anybody else that's
interested in what we do. And there is a film
(17:09):
portal that most film festivals use call film Freeway, and
so that is how a filmmaker would submit their film
to Bronze Lens. We put our link in our communication
and a filmmaker would submit their film through the portal
and they start in October and we receive films all
(17:31):
the way up through April. Over the course of this
six month period, those films are being judged and screened
so that we know what has a chance of being
in the film festival. You know, as you screen through
and in the process of viewing the films, that's when
(17:52):
you get the backstory of who's part of the crew,
and so many of the names. In fact, all of
the names, with the exception of just a couple that
you mentioned, were a surprise to us as we went
through the films and you go through the entire crew
and you go, oh my god. You know, you're just
(18:12):
looking at a name. It's just like, well, Mars Chestnut, right,
and he had come to Bronze Lens years ago when
they did the Malcolm Malcolm little movie Best Man Holiday
brought that to Bron'ze Lens as a closing film, and
so to see that he's producer on a film, or
(18:36):
to see the name of Jamie Lee Curtis, or to
see the name of Ben Crump, and Ben Crump is
actually associated with two films that we have and what
that says, though, what that says is there are people
that are out there that don't mind putting their time,
energy or dollars behind these credible stories that need to
(19:02):
be told. That's really what it's said.
Speaker 1 (19:04):
The other the two movies you're saying like How to
Suit the Klan and the other one is The Water Boys.
That's where civil rights attorney being Crumpet is tied to.
So let's let's let people know some important days here,
like April twenty first, I'm excuse me, August twenty first
through the twenty fifth. That's where you'll be doing the
selections and the daily screenings and all panels in the workshops.
(19:26):
That's the twenty first, and that's going to be the
twer Atlanta Theater, correct historic correct tarer Okay, And then
on Saturday twenty fourth, Bronze Lynn's inaugural Filmmakers Ball. Tell
me about that.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
Yes, we used to have the Women Superstars event on
that Saturday part of the festival, and we appealed that
off to a different time of the year so that
we can celebrate all of these amazing women and just
do that. And so I wanted, yes, that's right, that's right.
(20:01):
So I wanted to do something on that Saturday, and
I started thinking about a ball. Now this is me,
of course I have these young team members, and so
it got skewed into a sneaker ball, which is great
because people get excited about that. But the primary thing
(20:22):
was this is year fifteen, and we wanted to do
something in celebration of ourselves that yes, we made it,
but we also wanted to celebrate our amazing filmmakers, both
those from this year and those from previous years. And
so we have extended an invitation to all the filmmakers
from whom we had contact information to come out and
(20:46):
join us in this celebration. It's the Sneaker Ball at
City Hall, and we are excited that the Mayor's Office
of Film, Entertainment and Nightlife is hosting us to be
at City Hall on the evening of August twenty fourth.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
When you start talking, when you start talking about the
secrets to success, you know, being able to pull this off.
You mentioned in early relationships being tied to the visitors bureau,
sitting down and somebody recommends goes to a naming company.
What is the secrets of your success of being the
sustain itself for fifteen years, and also to come with
(21:25):
significant participants as producers Jamie Fox, Ben Crump, Jamie Lee Curtis,
Marris Chestnut. What's the secrets?
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Well, I can't take credit for the Jamie Lee, Curtis, etc.
S of those names, because, as I said to you,
those names as part of the crew were a surprise
to us. But the fact that the filmmakers thought enough
of us to submit their film to us says everything.
And so I'll give you a couple of things. Number One,
(21:57):
Bronze Lens is an Academy Award qualifying film festival for
the short film. We've been awarded that since twenty sixteen.
That means that the kind of film that submits as
a short film a short narrative, the film that wins
in that category gets to submit their film to the
(22:20):
Academy Awards for consideration for next year's awards. It's huge,
It really is huge, and so that's one reason that
filmmakers look at us. Another reason that filmmakers look at us,
and I would say, this is part of our key
to success is we treat everyone well so well. The
(22:44):
hospitality component of Bronze Lens is something that comes from
me naturally from my years thirty two years in hospitality industry,
but knowing how to treat people and make them feel
welcome and when they get here, having a quality an
excellent experience for them. That's what Bron's Lens is known for.
(23:05):
And if you go back and read the experiences or
the reviews that the filmmakers write, they always mentioned how
well they were treated. I have a quick story I'd
love to tell if I could. There was a young
man that came to Bronze Lens from California a student film.
He brought a student film. He was looking for the
(23:27):
room where his film was going to be screened, and
he passed the registration desk. One of the gentlemen at
the registration desk came out from behind the desk and said, son,
I'll show you where the room is, but here, let
me help you. The young man was having trouble putting
his tie on. He wanted to have a tie and
jacket before he walked in the room to say I'm
(23:48):
the filmmaker. And so one of our gentlemen came around
and made sure that that young man looked presentable to
go to the next screen. Go to his screening, and
I came along right at that time, and I walked
him to his screening, and he was just so overwhelmed
with the kindness because that's not what he expected. And
(24:10):
after it was over, the fact that everyone came up
to him and talked to him about how great his
film was and that people recognized him throughout the weekend,
that was important to him. But we tried to treat
each of our filmmakers the very same way. We have
a huge group of volunteers. Last week we did an
(24:31):
orientation for over one hundred people that want to volunteer
for Bronze Lens this year because they've heard about what
a great experience it was. And so many of our
volunteers go on to make connections because some of them
are filmmakers or budding filmmakers themselves, and so that becomes
(24:51):
a great experience. So having a great volunteer team is
part of success. And then I would say the final
piece is always all always relationships, relationships knowing people, knowing
people that know people. But it's just not a connection.
I never really used that word because if we're doing
(25:13):
business together, I want you to know me. I want
you to know about my integrity, about the integrity of
my organization. I want you to know about my Atlantic
history and the things that we've done, so that you
know who you're doing business with. And so that's why
people that have done work with us don't mind referring
us on to other people that could possibly collaborate with us,
(25:36):
because they know we have that kind of reputation of
really sitting down and trying to build those relationships.
Speaker 1 (25:44):
Awesome. Now, the last day, which is Sunday, August twenty fifth,
we've already talked about Sneak of Ball. We talked about
twenty first to the twenty fifth. You can see the
screens at the Tara Atlanta Theater, but on the campus
of more House campus at the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center,
you're going to have the cinema and Social Justice Sunday.
(26:04):
You said from Jump that's always been a major role
that Bronze Land has played. This is not an inauur role,
this is something this is part of your DNA. Why
is it so important?
Speaker 2 (26:14):
Well, semon Social Justice Sunday. Those screenings will take place
also at the Tara, and then we'll move to the
Ray Charles Performing Arts Center for the Bronze Lens Awards,
But let me speak on cinemon social justice Sunday. This
is Atlanta. This is Atlanta, that place that was known
before film as the cradle of the civil rights movement.
(26:37):
The home of doctor Martin Luther King Junior, the home
of John Lewis, the home of Joseph Lowry, c T.
Vivian Zernona Clayton, Coretta Scott Corretta, Scott King. We had
legends walking among us.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Can you tell them how the website and how we
can reach out to them for tickets and more information
on the event.
Speaker 2 (27:01):
Yes, Tickets and everything that you need to know about
the film festival are all at our website www dot
Bronze Lens dot com, b r O n Z E
l E n s dot com. We're on Facebook, Instagram,
(27:22):
TikTok x, and just at Bronze Lens and you'll find
us on all of those platforms, and those platforms also
give you a lot of information about the various panels
that we'll have. There are eleven panels that we will
have panel discussions with all kinds of topics from creating
(27:44):
a film with your iPhone to getting your film green lit,
and we have one hundred and forty films over the
course of those five days rushin and topics is varied
as women and history, relationships and men, mental health and comedy,
and religion and spirituality. All of that information is on
(28:06):
that website for you to dig through and find the
things that are of interest to you. That's Bronze Lens
dot com.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Awesome. I really appreciate you taking the time. We're gonna
get this out here. You know, I had to contact
you because I have history with this. I've sat on
panels for Kathleen. She know, come on, now you forgot
about that? Did you forgot that you do panels for?
You know?
Speaker 2 (28:30):
Then I interviewed you. I'd interviewed you my first You're
my first interviewing. Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
Thank you, and I thank you for allowing you to
me to interview you and also welcome you into fifteen
years and fifteen more years and when you get the
fifty we're gonna interview for the fiftieth anniversary of the
Bronze Lyns Film Festival. We ain't gonna know where Kathleen, Okay,
we might be talking a little bit slower at the
fifty year Adversary but we're gonna be talking, okay, even
(28:59):
though you didn't know at the time, but you found
out through research Jamie Fox being Crop, Jamie Lee Curtis,
Debora Riley Draper and my man Morris Chestnut.
Speaker 2 (29:09):
Yes, sir, yes, yes, you know what for us. You
had us come and do the we we didn't curate,
but you had us produce the film festival part of
the Steve Neighborhood Awards for two year.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
Yes, oh, there is so many Absolutely, that was in
twenty fifteen. That was in twenty fifteen. Absolutely, two years. Absolutely, Yes, sir,
Oh my god, so awesome.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
You're proud of us too, so we just don't forget
what our friends have done. Thank you all right, thank you.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
This has been another edition of Money Making Conversation Masterclass
posted by me Rushaun McDonald. Thank you to our guests
on the show today and thank you our listening to audience. Now.
If you want to listen to any episode I want
to be a guest on the show, visit Moneymaking Conversations
dot com. Our social media handle is money Making Conversation.
Join us next week and remember to always leave with
(30:03):
your gifts. Keep winning.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
Mm hmmm.
Welcome to the show. I am Rashan McDonald, the host
of Money Making Conversations Masterclass, where we encourage people to
stop reading other people's success stories and start planning their own.
Listen up as I interview entrepreneurs from around the country,
talk to celebrities and ask them how they are running
their companies, and speak with nod profits who are making
(00:25):
a difference in their local communities. Now, sit back and
listen as we unlock the secrets to their success on
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Hi, I'm Rashan MacDonald. I host
the weekly Money Making Conversation Masterclass show. The interviews and
information that business show provides off for everyone. Like I
tell you all the time, it's time to start reading
(00:47):
other people's success stories and start living your own. My
guest is a visionary. She's the founder of the Bronze
Lands Film Festival, based in Atlanta, Georgia. Over the last
fifteen years, Bronze Lands has promoted the work of independent
filmmakers of color from Atlanta, the Southeast region, the nation,
and the world. This film festival vised networking opportunities that
(01:07):
would develop the next generation of filmmakers. Now let's hear
the founder. Please welco with the Money Making Conversation Masterclass,
Kathleen Bertrand how you doing, my friend, I'm.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
Wonderful so delighted to talk to you anytime.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
Well, first of all, what is my brief story and
the intro I mentioned what the Bronze Lens Film Festival represent.
What is the mission of the Bronze Lens Film Festival
based in Atlanta, Georgia.
Speaker 2 (01:37):
We have always wanted to be this platform for connecting
filmmakers of color. We wanted that to happen in this
place called Atlanta, Georgia because at the time that we started,
Georgia was really rising on the scene as a major
(01:59):
production site in competition with New York and Hollywood. And
now it just depends on which month of the year
one of them. One of those three is either number
one or number two, either Georgia, New York or California
in film and television production. Our reason for being starting
(02:23):
this platform is to make sure that people that looks
like me were included in whatever the process might be.
Is this new to Atlanta? If it is, how do
I get in? How can I become a part of it?
As if I'm a creator? How do I get my
work shown, or maybe I don't know that I want
(02:44):
to be a creator, but I have a great story.
What are the tools that I need to tell my
story or to tell the stories that I have been
thinking about. So with all of those things, Bronze Lens
wanted to be that pivot point for people to say, Hey,
me too, I can do this kind of work, or
(03:04):
I'm interested in this kind of work and why not Atlanta.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
The event starts August twenty first and runs through August
twenty fifth. Can the everyday layman attend these these greetings?
Speaker 2 (03:18):
Absolutely? We have prices and attractions and interest for everyone.
The film prices are the general cost of a film
fifteen dollars, but if you come and you want to
see a group of short films, you may see five
(03:40):
or six films at one time, one after the other,
for that same fifteen dollars. So the website breaks it
down with the different blocks that we have. But the
average person would really enjoy finding out the various stories
that we have have to tell, and you find yourself
(04:02):
in these stories. In addition to that, every year we
have programming that is open at no charge, and this
happens on Sunday, the twenty fifth, because we have our
Cinema and Social Justice Sunday screenings. We always pick at
least two films that really reflect our journey or our
(04:27):
struggle when it comes to social justice, and nothing really
tells those stories better than seeing them on film, seeing
them on a big screen, and so we do that
every year since we've started. We make Cinema and Social
Justice Sunday open to the public.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Then you have the Cinema and Social Justice Sunday, which,
like you said, all those will be screened at to
Tara Atlanta Theater. But it's part of your DNA. Why
is it so important for Bronze Land Bronze Lenz Film
Festival to feature these type of independent and sometimes commercial productions.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
Yes, Bronze Lens Film Festival has from its beginning recognized
the fact that we are Atlanta born and intricate, and
all woven into the Atlanta DNA is the story of
civil rights and the civil rights movement. Atlanta has often
(05:29):
been called the cradle of civil rights, and so how
better to stamp our identity and how better to make
something unique that is particular to Atlanta than a day
that honors those films that uplift, that talk about that
(05:54):
educate around the area of social justice and human rights.
We had to me it was like a no brainer.
We have to do this. This is what Atlanta is
about because we do have people that walk among us legends,
so to speak, the late Congressman John Lewis, Martin Luther
(06:15):
King Junior, of course, the late Joseph Lowery, c T. Vivian,
and still among us Andrew Young and Zernona Clayton. In fact,
last year, Bronze Lens began the Andrew J. Young Cinema
and Social Justice Award, and that is going to one
(06:36):
of those films. I can't say, but we wanted to
do something that honored Andrew Young. Did you know that
he was a filmmaker, a documentarian. Yes, he has won
Emmys for films that he has created, and so what
better way to honor Andy than to have an award
(06:58):
that really recognizes his skill and talent as a documentarian
but also recognizes the vast work that he has done
in this area of human rights. And so that's what
that Sunday means to us and why it's a significant
part of our programming. Sunday Evening when we're at the
(07:19):
Ray Charles Performing Arts Center at Morehouse College. We'll get
a chance to award all of the top filmmakers in
the various categories of films that we have. So not
only will someone receive that Andrew J. Young Award, but
we will also honor the best Short Documentary, the Best Documentary,
(07:41):
the short film, the feature film, the web series, the
dance video, the music video, Best Actor, Best Actress. All
of those are awards that will come that night at
the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center.
Speaker 1 (07:56):
Right. You know, it's really important when you hear something
like this because everybody has a bright idea. Kathleen, Okay, everybody,
I want to do this. I have dream. How did
you take this idea and made in a reality? The
Bronze Lands Film Festival and we've come back, We're going
to really get into detail a lot of the celebrity
names who are associated with a lot of the projects
(08:19):
that are being produced and presented. But how did this
idea come to you? And then how did you eventually execute?
Speaker 3 (08:25):
Please don't go anywhere. We'll be right back with more
Money Making Conversations Masterclass. Welcome back to the Money Making
Conversations Masterclass. Hosted by Rashaan McDonald. Money Making Conversations Masterclass
(08:46):
continues online at Moneymakingconversations dot com and follow money Making
Conversations Masterclass on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
The idea came to me from the CEO at the
Atlanta Convention in Visitors Bureau, where I was vice president,
maybe I was senior vice president at that time. I
had a long career with the Convention in Visitors Bureau,
and my area was diversity marketing, making sure that people
(09:21):
outside of Atlanta knew all of the greatness that this
city had and why this city could handle their meeting
or their conference or anything like their tour or anything
like that. So diversity marketing was my area. The new
person in charge was a gentleman by the name of
William Pate. He had just started in the role, and
(09:43):
he had a meeting and encouraged me to come to
a meeting in his office and he asked me why
didn't Atlanta have something like a Sun Dance for the
African American community. He says, When I go out to
I noticed that everybody's talking about Sun Dancer. Everybody's talking
(10:05):
about what they're doing or where they're going, and you
see people on the streets, and he says, why doesn't
Atlanta have something like that? Because his fallback was, you know,
after all, we have Tyler Perry Studios here and it
just seems like, you know, this community should have more.
So I took his words. His words were, why don't
you see what you can do with that? That was
(10:27):
my direction that morning, and so I spent that was
two thousand and eight, And so I spent the early
part of two thousand and nine doing research, really looking
into what were film festivals in other places for people
of color, specifically what did they do, who came, why
(10:48):
did they come? And then I began to talk to
the community here because there were some small film festivals
but nothing really that it didn't press, didn't get airtime,
no advertising, just if you knew you knew kind of events.
And I wanted to do something bigger. So I started
(11:12):
talking to those people. And then I called on a
friend that I had known that you had a chance
to meet from my days at Spelman College, Cheryl Gripper,
who at that time was with the eleven o'live television
as vice president of Community Affairs. And Cheryl then and
she was also had a Master's in film and she
(11:36):
called on a good friend of hers who worked with her,
and that friend was Dedre McDonald who is our current
and was then artistic director. And Dedre is an Emmy
Award winning producer. But not only that, she was an
instructor in the area of film production at Clark Atlanta University.
(12:00):
And so, with those ladies giving input expanding the vision,
Bronze Lens began and had our first presentation in two
thousand and nine. Now this is where friends of friends
are important. Remember I'm at the Convention and Visitors Bureau,
(12:21):
and the Convention and Visitors Bureau had a board of directors.
One of the persons on the board of directors was
with Turner Network, and she took a liking to me,
as people would say, and gave me the opportunity to
make a presentation about Bronze Lens to the Turner family.
(12:41):
So at that time that included Turner Network, Television, Turner Classics,
the Cartoon Network, the Super Channel, TBS, all of that.
All of those people were actually in the room when
we see at CNN. Of course, when we made our
first presentation and they gave us their feedback, they thought
(13:06):
it was a good idea for Atlanta, and then the
feedback after the meeting was that they didn't like the name.
The name that we presented was the Bronze Jubilee Film Festival,
and that was really based on an event that Cheryl
had produced in some years previous that was an awards
(13:29):
show honoring great people in the community. But the people
at Turner just didn't like that name for this event.
And so my contact there at Turner said, well, I
know a naming company. I had never heard of a
naming company before. We shine okay, like people get paid
(13:51):
to name things, Yes, they do, and she knew a
naming company. So she said, let me have them talk
to you. Let's see if we can come up with
just a better name. And so I sat down with
the naming company. Cheryl sat down with them as well,
and we just gave that broad vision of what we
thought Bronze Lens, well, what we thought the film festival
(14:14):
could look like, and about it was Bronze Jubilee, also
known as looking for another name. So they came back
about four about four six weeks later, and the name
was Bronze Lens. They actually had about six names on
(14:34):
a page, but I can tell you when I saw
Bronze Lens, I don't remember seeing anything else on the
page because just nothing struck me like that. The coloration
of it, so to speak, gave us a broad reach
to bronze people, people of color, across the diet around
(14:56):
the world, and then the lens just talked about everything
we did, both in front of and behind the lens.
That was exactly who we were. So that's where the
name came from in that process. And our first festival
was twenty ten. We had twenty three films. Will Packer
(15:19):
came by, Rob Hardy made us a video that we
put on our website. We got a welcome message from
the Mayor of Atlanta, Cassim Reid, and that's how we
launched Bron's Lens under the guys of the Atlanta Convention
and Visitors Bureau. It really was the incubator for what
(15:42):
we were doing. But the festival has always been a
separate five oh one C three organization with its own
bank accounts, et cetera, et cetera. The film that you
brought to Bron's Lens was the Steve Harvey film.
Speaker 1 (15:58):
Well, you know that's from Bronze Jubilee now it's Bronze
Lynz Film Festival. Now some of the celebrity names associated
with some of the production as producers Jamie Fox, Jamie Lee, Curtis, Yes,
Morris Chestnut, civil rights attorney Ben Krump, each producer of
(16:19):
a film called How to Sue the Klan That is
so typical of attorney being Crump, very good friend of mine. Now,
how do these films get selected and how they will submitted?
Because you know you want the big names associated with
that's what brings the media that week, gets people excited
about seeing the projects when you see and hear about
the Jamie Fox film A, Ben Krump, a Jamie Lee Curtis,
(16:42):
Debora Riley Draper, Morris Chestnut. But how do they get submitted?
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Well, we have a submissions process that opens each year
in October. We broadcast that both through our social media
as well as with a newsletter that we send out
to filmmakers both current and previous, in anybody else that's
interested in what we do. And there is a film
(17:09):
portal that most film festivals use call film Freeway, and
so that is how a filmmaker would submit their film
to Bronze Lens. We put our link in our communication
and a filmmaker would submit their film through the portal
and they start in October and we receive films all
(17:31):
the way up through April. Over the course of this
six month period, those films are being judged and screened
so that we know what has a chance of being
in the film festival. You know, as you screen through
and in the process of viewing the films, that's when
(17:52):
you get the backstory of who's part of the crew,
and so many of the names. In fact, all of
the names, with the exception of just a couple that
you mentioned, were a surprise to us as we went
through the films and you go through the entire crew
and you go, oh my god. You know, you're just
(18:12):
looking at a name. It's just like, well, Mars Chestnut, right,
and he had come to Bronze Lens years ago when
they did the Malcolm Malcolm little movie Best Man Holiday
brought that to Bron'ze Lens as a closing film, and
so to see that he's producer on a film, or
(18:36):
to see the name of Jamie Lee Curtis, or to
see the name of Ben Crump, and Ben Crump is
actually associated with two films that we have and what
that says, though, what that says is there are people
that are out there that don't mind putting their time,
energy or dollars behind these credible stories that need to
(19:02):
be told. That's really what it's said.
Speaker 1 (19:04):
The other the two movies you're saying like How to
Suit the Klan and the other one is The Water Boys.
That's where civil rights attorney being Crumpet is tied to.
So let's let's let people know some important days here,
like April twenty first, I'm excuse me, August twenty first
through the twenty fifth. That's where you'll be doing the
selections and the daily screenings and all panels in the workshops.
(19:26):
That's the twenty first, and that's going to be the
twer Atlanta Theater, correct historic correct tarer Okay, And then
on Saturday twenty fourth, Bronze Lynn's inaugural Filmmakers Ball. Tell
me about that.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
Yes, we used to have the Women Superstars event on
that Saturday part of the festival, and we appealed that
off to a different time of the year so that
we can celebrate all of these amazing women and just
do that. And so I wanted, yes, that's right, that's right.
(20:01):
So I wanted to do something on that Saturday, and
I started thinking about a ball. Now this is me,
of course I have these young team members, and so
it got skewed into a sneaker ball, which is great
because people get excited about that. But the primary thing
(20:22):
was this is year fifteen, and we wanted to do
something in celebration of ourselves that yes, we made it,
but we also wanted to celebrate our amazing filmmakers, both
those from this year and those from previous years. And
so we have extended an invitation to all the filmmakers
from whom we had contact information to come out and
(20:46):
join us in this celebration. It's the Sneaker Ball at
City Hall, and we are excited that the Mayor's Office
of Film, Entertainment and Nightlife is hosting us to be
at City Hall on the evening of August twenty fourth.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
When you start talking, when you start talking about the
secrets to success, you know, being able to pull this off.
You mentioned in early relationships being tied to the visitors bureau,
sitting down and somebody recommends goes to a naming company.
What is the secrets of your success of being the
sustain itself for fifteen years, and also to come with
(21:25):
significant participants as producers Jamie Fox, Ben Crump, Jamie Lee Curtis,
Marris Chestnut. What's the secrets?
Speaker 2 (21:34):
Well, I can't take credit for the Jamie Lee, Curtis, etc.
S of those names, because, as I said to you,
those names as part of the crew were a surprise
to us. But the fact that the filmmakers thought enough
of us to submit their film to us says everything.
And so I'll give you a couple of things. Number One,
(21:57):
Bronze Lens is an Academy Award qualifying film festival for
the short film. We've been awarded that since twenty sixteen.
That means that the kind of film that submits as
a short film a short narrative, the film that wins
in that category gets to submit their film to the
(22:20):
Academy Awards for consideration for next year's awards. It's huge,
It really is huge, and so that's one reason that
filmmakers look at us. Another reason that filmmakers look at us,
and I would say, this is part of our key
to success is we treat everyone well so well. The
(22:44):
hospitality component of Bronze Lens is something that comes from
me naturally from my years thirty two years in hospitality industry,
but knowing how to treat people and make them feel
welcome and when they get here, having a quality an
excellent experience for them. That's what Bron's Lens is known for.
(23:05):
And if you go back and read the experiences or
the reviews that the filmmakers write, they always mentioned how
well they were treated. I have a quick story I'd
love to tell if I could. There was a young
man that came to Bronze Lens from California a student film.
He brought a student film. He was looking for the
(23:27):
room where his film was going to be screened, and
he passed the registration desk. One of the gentlemen at
the registration desk came out from behind the desk and said, son,
I'll show you where the room is, but here, let
me help you. The young man was having trouble putting
his tie on. He wanted to have a tie and
jacket before he walked in the room to say I'm
(23:48):
the filmmaker. And so one of our gentlemen came around
and made sure that that young man looked presentable to
go to the next screen. Go to his screening, and
I came along right at that time, and I walked
him to his screening, and he was just so overwhelmed
with the kindness because that's not what he expected. And
(24:10):
after it was over, the fact that everyone came up
to him and talked to him about how great his
film was and that people recognized him throughout the weekend,
that was important to him. But we tried to treat
each of our filmmakers the very same way. We have
a huge group of volunteers. Last week we did an
(24:31):
orientation for over one hundred people that want to volunteer
for Bronze Lens this year because they've heard about what
a great experience it was. And so many of our
volunteers go on to make connections because some of them
are filmmakers or budding filmmakers themselves, and so that becomes
(24:51):
a great experience. So having a great volunteer team is
part of success. And then I would say the final
piece is always all always relationships, relationships knowing people, knowing
people that know people. But it's just not a connection.
I never really used that word because if we're doing
(25:13):
business together, I want you to know me. I want
you to know about my integrity, about the integrity of
my organization. I want you to know about my Atlantic
history and the things that we've done, so that you
know who you're doing business with. And so that's why
people that have done work with us don't mind referring
us on to other people that could possibly collaborate with us,
(25:36):
because they know we have that kind of reputation of
really sitting down and trying to build those relationships.
Speaker 1 (25:44):
Awesome. Now, the last day, which is Sunday, August twenty fifth,
we've already talked about Sneak of Ball. We talked about
twenty first to the twenty fifth. You can see the
screens at the Tara Atlanta Theater, but on the campus
of more House campus at the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center,
you're going to have the cinema and Social Justice Sunday.
(26:04):
You said from Jump that's always been a major role
that Bronze Land has played. This is not an inauur role,
this is something this is part of your DNA. Why
is it so important?
Speaker 2 (26:14):
Well, semon Social Justice Sunday. Those screenings will take place
also at the Tara, and then we'll move to the
Ray Charles Performing Arts Center for the Bronze Lens Awards,
But let me speak on cinemon social justice Sunday. This
is Atlanta. This is Atlanta, that place that was known
before film as the cradle of the civil rights movement.
(26:37):
The home of doctor Martin Luther King Junior, the home
of John Lewis, the home of Joseph Lowry, c T.
Vivian Zernona Clayton, Coretta Scott Corretta, Scott King. We had
legends walking among us.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Can you tell them how the website and how we
can reach out to them for tickets and more information
on the event.
Speaker 2 (27:01):
Yes, Tickets and everything that you need to know about
the film festival are all at our website www dot
Bronze Lens dot com, b r O n Z E
l E n s dot com. We're on Facebook, Instagram,
(27:22):
TikTok x, and just at Bronze Lens and you'll find
us on all of those platforms, and those platforms also
give you a lot of information about the various panels
that we'll have. There are eleven panels that we will
have panel discussions with all kinds of topics from creating
(27:44):
a film with your iPhone to getting your film green lit,
and we have one hundred and forty films over the
course of those five days rushin and topics is varied
as women and history, relationships and men, mental health and comedy,
and religion and spirituality. All of that information is on
(28:06):
that website for you to dig through and find the
things that are of interest to you. That's Bronze Lens
dot com.
Speaker 1 (28:15):
Awesome. I really appreciate you taking the time. We're gonna
get this out here. You know, I had to contact
you because I have history with this. I've sat on
panels for Kathleen. She know, come on, now you forgot
about that? Did you forgot that you do panels for?
You know?
Speaker 2 (28:30):
Then I interviewed you. I'd interviewed you my first You're
my first interviewing. Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
Thank you, and I thank you for allowing you to
me to interview you and also welcome you into fifteen
years and fifteen more years and when you get the
fifty we're gonna interview for the fiftieth anniversary of the
Bronze Lyns Film Festival. We ain't gonna know where Kathleen, Okay,
we might be talking a little bit slower at the
fifty year Adversary but we're gonna be talking, okay, even
(28:59):
though you didn't know at the time, but you found
out through research Jamie Fox being Crop, Jamie Lee Curtis,
Debora Riley Draper and my man Morris Chestnut.
Speaker 2 (29:09):
Yes, sir, yes, yes, you know what for us. You
had us come and do the we we didn't curate,
but you had us produce the film festival part of
the Steve Neighborhood Awards for two year.
Speaker 1 (29:26):
Yes, oh, there is so many Absolutely, that was in
twenty fifteen. That was in twenty fifteen. Absolutely, two years. Absolutely, Yes, sir,
Oh my god, so awesome.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
You're proud of us too, so we just don't forget
what our friends have done. Thank you all right, thank you.
Speaker 1 (29:41):
This has been another edition of Money Making Conversation Masterclass
posted by me Rushaun McDonald. Thank you to our guests
on the show today and thank you our listening to audience. Now.
If you want to listen to any episode I want
to be a guest on the show, visit Moneymaking Conversations
dot com. Our social media handle is money Making Conversation.
Join us next week and remember to always leave with
(30:03):
your gifts. Keep winning.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
Mm hmmm.
Host
Rushion McDonald
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.