The critically-acclaimed documentary film Time Is Illmatic made a strong impression at the Tribeca Film Festival this year and is set to be released theatrically Oct. 3. Filmmakers One9 (director) and Erik Parker (writer) spoke to rolling out about the project and why the public should understand that this story is about more than a classic hip-hop album.
“When we started the documentary … we really were just focusing on the music and how it affected us and we wanted to tell the story of the making of Illmatic,” Parker explains. “But after several interviews, including one with Olu Dara, it expanded beyond just what went into the making of it and into the understanding of Illmatic and the cultural context and lineage and legacy of the Jones family and Queensbridge, New York.”
The initial idea was to do a DVD for Illmatic‘s 10 year anniversary in 2004. But One9 explains that once they were able to speak with Nas’ father, everything shifted.
“Our very first interview was with Olu Dara, he’s just an all-around very cultured individual from Natchez, Mississippi,” shares One9. “What really changed our whole scope of the film was learning about the history of the Jones family and learning about their musical roots and cultural roots and the books that they read.”
“It gave us more insight into the spirit of the Jones family from the father’s side,” he continues. “We really wanted to tell a generational story and a cultural story and how the culture shaped the family and what eventually became Illmatic.”
“The challenge was to make sure that we told this story as precise and as streamlined as possible,” says Parker. “When people hear the title, they think it’s strictly a music documentary, but we tried to tell something beyond the music that’s an American story. We wanted to tell the story of these young men coming of age at a certain time and how Illmatic spoke for them and in a way, validated them.”
