The excitement and anticipation for the inaugural Indie Night Film Festival national tour was palpable. The entryway into the Plaza Theater resembled the 405 freeway in Los Angeles during rush hour: complete gridlock on the inside, long lines on the “entrance ramp,” and foot traffic that inched along at a glacial pace.
And this was the best result that Indie Night Film Festival founder Dave Brown could have asked for. Brown flashed a triumphant smile as he took the stage to address the overflowing theater and commence the road version of the INFF, the first of its kind in the world. His five-course movie feast that began its weekly national tour in Atlanta is considered a certified blockbuster.
The INFF in Atlanta was thick with celebrities such as actor-director-producer Terri J. Vaughn, “Girlfriends” star Jill Marie Jones, award-winning icon Clifton Powell, actor-singer J. Young MDK, former BET news anchor Ed Gordon, GUY singer Damion Hall, Fast & Furious actor and filmmaker Roberto Sanchez, and others.
Brown views his weekly movie fest as a cinematic version of “American Idol,” where he and his crew will travel to different locales around the country, showcase dynamic local filmmakers and then transport the best of the crop back with him to Los Angeles. After hosting his Indie Night Film Festival solely at the legendary TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood for the past 11 years, Brown is taking his game on the road.
“We have to go back to the grassroots,” Brown declared. “[INFF] is 11 years old now, and we are the ‘American Idol’ of films. We are going to give everyone a chance to shine, to become a celebrity in their cities, and the great films I’m taking back to Hollywood, to show at the TCL Chinese Theater.”
Morris Chestnut, the matinee idol who has starred in a succession of seminal films such as The Best Man franchise, Two Can Play That Game, Higher Learning and The Brothers, informed the festival throng that his career did not start with John Singleton’s 1991 classic Boyz N the Hood.
“I am a huge supporter of independent films. I didn’t have a platform like this when I first started out,” Morris testified before the crowd. “I did independent films back when camcorders first came out. So having an opportunity like this is something is truly invaluable. So what Dave is doing, to give us as talent and creative people [a platform], to when we do our independent projects, he puts them in front of [legendary casting director] Robi Reed and the producers, [in order] to get a shot to go to the next level. And that’s why I’m a huge supporter of this.”
