Control the Narrative Control the Outcome

Black-Owned Production Companies Green Light Aspiring Youth Filmmakers of Color

●       In 2015, a collective impact partnership born by the Soul District Business Association@souldistrictpdx (formerly known as the N/NE Business Association@N/NEBA) began to look at how they might create a pipeline for the next generation of youth entrepreneurs of color. In a city where the stories we tell about communities are generally controlled and circulated by those entities with the largest megaphones, deepest pockets and white dominant cultural narratives, it was decided that a focus on storytelling through film and video production training might make for a welcoming and impactful element of change.  As a result, the Green Lighting Black Lives Matter Youth Media Program (GLBLM)@GLBLM was activated.

The Green Lighting Black Lives Matter Youth Media program puts cutting edge film and video production equipment into the hands of aspiring young, black filmmakers, ages 16-24, and empowers them to tell their stories from the perspective of the Black experience in Portland.

The program, although not directly associated with the Black Lives Matter organization, did take some cues from the movement that has sparked one of the most critical examinations of bureaucratic, systemic inequities since the civil rights movement of the 1960’s@CRM. It also evolved concepts from the UCLA@UCLA study called “Flipping the Script@flippingthescript,” which cites, “Black voices and faces are largely absent, both behind and in front of the camera.” And  “…when marginalized groups in society are absent from the stories a nation tells about itself, or when media images are rooted primarily in stereotypes, inequality is normalized and is more likely to be reinforced over time through our prejudices and practices.”

With the generous support of grant funds from several entities including MHCRC@MHCRC, MCC@MCC, US Bank@usbank, Pacific Power@pacificpower and Venture Portland@ventureportland, GLBLM officially launched in the fall of 2016. Since then, over 50 young aspiring filmmakers of color from around Portland have vied for the opportunity to receive training from a collective of ten predominately Black professionals who own successful businesses in the multi-media production industry today.  Advised and mentored by entrepreneurs of color has greatly benefited program participants who are not only receiving valuable film and video technical instruction, they are also learning what it takes to become thriving entrepreneurs, community collaborators and culturally responsive in their own right.

17 year-old Clare Clark, one of GLBLM’s first-year trainees and SDBA summer intern, shares her take away of how the program impacted her.

"GLBLM awakened me to the history about who we are as being born black and the outcomes of all of that.  This information, being biracial ( black/white) and raised mostly by my white side of the family, was never part of my  perception nor ever really given to me. From what I didn't know to all that I know now, it has been the most valuable experience I ever had in my life. Not only how I see the world, but interact with. Being able to express that through the films we made was an incredible journey, it changed my life.”

We talked with four of the lead trainers from the current GLBLM program who are taking time out of their busy workloads to help reinforce the pipeline of learning and advancement for these aspiring filmmakers.   

John Washington, CEO of Flossin Media, GLBLM Co-founder, Program Director and Cultural Responsiveness Trainer.

“I wanted to spend the rest of my career and my life building programs and opportunities for young people to experience the perceptions of significance, capability and influence.

“What we do at GLBLM, is to deliver a message about who they [youth participants] are as individuals, while reinforcing their understanding of the whole historical evolution of the African-American in this country.”

John “Bubba” Washington@johnwashington, has over 28 years as an entrepreneur and community advocate. His job titles over this time include: equity facilitator, intervention specialist, land use developer, social service provider, community activist, small business consultant and national publisher/editor/ television producer.  Maybe you are thinking that he was just born with it, but the truth is that Mr. John Washington is one of those rare individuals you meet in life who has come full circle. Born onto the mean streets of Patterson, New Jersey, he rose through the ashes and rubble of the mean streets that claimed many of his family, friends and neighbors, to become a powerhouse of inspiration and encouragement.

Realizing his passion for giving voice to and empowering people of color, he decided to enter the world of media through the acquisition of Flossin Media, 14 years ago. Flossin Media is a full-service, surround sound media, marketing and production company that seeks to uncover inspirational, motivational and educational messaging, while tackling complex socio-economic issues facing communities of color.

 Mims Rouse, Founder of the African-American XY program, Executive Director of Coalition of Black Men and GLBLM Cultural Responsiveness Trainer

As a Portland businessman with nearly 2 decades of work experience as an Affirmative Action and Diversity Compliance Officer for Corporate and Governmental agencies, Mims Rouse@hearttalks was well prepared when laying down the foundation for an even greater calling: an education enhancement pilot initiative, “It Starts with Them: African-American XY Program, LLC”.   Mr. Rouse pioneered this innovative educational program in response to the sobering statistics, anecdotal evidence and statistical data which starkly reveal the institutionalized presence of an insidious, cradle-to-grave incarceration pipeline for African-American males. Dedicated to the “awakening of African-American boys and men to their full potential”, the program seeks to“provide the means to closing the wealth gap between blacks and their peers.”

“Conducting root-cause analysis is considered necessary in any continuous improvement process until it comes to addressing the needs of our young African-American boys and men,” Mr. Rouse revealed. “Those with the power and resources to resist this type of analysis often do so, because the results may point fingers back at the institutions responsible for issuing the root-cause analysis; the very ones charged with ensuring these students’ safety and education. Combining positive, adult mentoring, with proven educational strategies, can help keep a child from being swept into the prison pipeline at an early age, breaking a vicious cycle,” Mr. Rouse stated. 

It is this mission to which he has dedicated more than just his career, it is a mission to which he has dedicated his life and is the reason why he chooses to collaborate with GLBLM as a Cultural Competency Trainer. He has also recently earned the distinction of being elected as the new Executive Director of the Coalition of Black Men(COBM)@COBM.

“Working with GLBLM and the Coalition of Black Men, definitely lies on my continuum of being a servant within the African-American community,” Rouse shared. “Stepping into the Executive Director role at the Coalition is a natural progression that feels a lot like breathing. Being in a position that feeds my soul, I am blessed to find fellowship amongst a group of accomplished, forward-thinking gentlemen, with an eye for mentoring and uplifting the next generation of thinkers and influencers.”

Trinity Webber, Director of Photography,  Editor of Heart and Hustle Productions and GLBLM Film & Video Trainer

Trinity Webber@trinitywebber grew up gravitating towards artistic endeavors.   As an adolescent, he loved drawing and claymation. As a teenager, his interests morphed into creating music, making beats and holding rap sessions with his buddies.  Never one to be limited by his circumstances, Webber quickly discovered that he had a knack for figuring out the technical aspects of things he felt passionate about and honed the discipline necessary to pursue it to the next level of mastery.  

“Because I was interested in music, I wanted to figure out how to use beat machines and recording equipment,” shared Webber. “I have the type of mind that gets how things work technically, so I figured it out fairly quickly and ended up becoming pretty good.”

When his buddies and other artists started asking him to mix and master their albums, Webber opened up a small recording establishment called Momentum Studios@momentumstudios. After years working as a music entrepreneur, Webber‘s creative genius began to morph again, this time towards video production. Originally, like many of his creative endeavors, it started out being “just for fun”, yet, with tenacity and daily practice, it also evolved into a thriving business.

For nearly two decades, he has worked producing, filming and editing numerous, impressive video projects. One of his earliest productions was a reality television show for Flossin Media, entitled, “Flossin TV: The Making of a Magazine@flossin”, which aired on Comcast for two seasons. Webber now works with his new company, Heart & Hustle Productions@H+H, where he and his partners focus on sports and entertainment-related interviews and documentaries for their impressive list of clients, including Nike and Adidas. His stories have featured LeBron James, Ken Griffey Jr, Damian Lillard, Macklemore, Anthony Hamilton and more. However, it was filming a documentary piece for pro-football player, Ndamukong Suh@Nsuh, and following him to his ancestral country of Cameroon, Africa, that gave Webber a deeper perspective on his Black cultural heritage and increased his receptivity to working with the GLBLM program.

“Going to Africa and seeing a whole continent filled with Black people, made me reconsider who I am as a Black person and our standing in the world,” Webber reminisced. “We are not an afterthought. There is a place in the world where we come from; our roots have a connection across the sea. I probably wouldn’t have seen that if I hadn’t been a filmmaker and  I find myself feeling grateful for the relationships I have with other Black business owners and artists in my community. When we come together in our local communities, supporting and working together, it can trickle out to our nation and beyond. I want to help young people at GLBLM have ‘woke’ moments like this as well, through the telling of stories about our people from our perspective.”

Ime Etuk, Owner of Laugh, Cry, Love Entertainment and GLBLM Film & Video Trainer

Ime N. Etuk@Imeetuck is a versatile Director and Producer who has worked in various stages of film and television production. He started off as a journalist, eventually working his way up from the local news assignment desk, to Field Producing for ABC NEWS shows such as World News Tonight and 20/20.

His initiation to Hollywood came when he was one of the 14 finalists selected (from a pool of over a thousand applicants) for the prestigious Directors Guild of America training program.  He took advantage of that opportunity to learn his craft and joined the Directors Guild of America@DGA. He worked with and learned from some of the most prolific directors in Hollywood, including Paul Haggis, “Crash”@paulhaggis, The Coen Brothers, “The Man Who Wasn’t There”@coenbrothers, Antoine Fuqua, “Training Day”@afuqua and David Lynch, “Twin Peaks”@dlynch. His debut feature, “Hurricane in the Rose Garden”, played at both Slamdance@slamdance and the Pan-African Film Festivals@ppff, before being picked up for wider distribution. As a commercial Director, he has helmed spots for the food, financial, automotive and  non-profit industries and directed music videos for independent and label artists, including Hip-Hop artist, Cassidy@cassidy, and international Afrobeat artist, Seun Kuti@skuti.

He was raised in Portland, Oregon, under the influence of his proud Nigerian family and now has his roots firmly planted in the city where he and his wife are raising their three children.  

“My work has me flying around the country, but I recently decided that I also need to concentrate on spreading my wings here in my own backyard.  I don’t need to not be running off to L.A. if the rest of the world is coming to Portland,” states Etuk.

As a result of his decision, he launched his own production company, “Laugh, Cry, Love Entertainment”@lcl.

“My company was born out of a place of connecting humans through ideas and actions and around the love of people and the power of storytelling.”

It was this principle of thought that allowed Etuk to align with GLBLM as one of the program’s collective impact partners.  

“I have to have projects I am passionate about, or am able to line up with, and GLBLM gave me that opportunity. Dealing with young people is important to me and always has been. Too often in my industry, people will advertise themselves as being able to make pretty pictures, but having the technical skills alone without being able to tell a good story, isn’t enough.  It’s the stories that have the strongest effects on people, reaching them at deeper levels. So, if you learn how to effectively tell these stories and tell your own story, that’s what separates you. This is what we are doing at GLBLM.  I am beginning to understand the purpose of the kind of stories I am supposed to tell. If you put your talent or gift before the purpose, you don’t bear fruit, because the purpose is supposed to fuel the gift, not the other way around. I want to be around guys like John Washington, who are developing a pipeline for young people to advance, not only technically, but as entrepreneurs as well. It’s what I needed for myself and what I want to give back to others.”

In addition to his contribution to GLBLM, Ime is an active contributor to N/NE STEAM Coalition@steam, Aksa Ibom State Organization@aksaibom and The Northwest Outward Bound School@nwobs, where he serves as a board member.

The GLBLM Program holds several 12-week training sessions throughout the year. It is free for the selected participants (ages 16-24), however, as a competitive process, candidates must fill out an application and then audition before a panel of industry professionals for a chance to receive training. About 10 finalists are selected for each session and at the end of these sessions, aspiring filmmakers will have produced a 5-8 minute short film on subject matters that impact the Black community. The young filmmakers then present their finished films before the public at a screening event and air them on public television networks, courtesy of Open Signal Public Television@ospt. Additionally, each graduate of the training program receives 180 hours of paid internship through the Soul District Business Association and WorkSystems Inc.@worksystems, where they use their newly found skills to help improve the narratives of their communities.

“It’s exciting to help young people learn to tell their own stories,” concludes Washington. “When you got a camera, when you got a voice, when you got a platform, you can deliver a message and you can achieve an outcome. There is no greater thing than this. It is the promise for our future tomorrow, and I want to see a future tomorrow for my kids.” 

To learn more about auditioning, volunteering or donating to G.L.B.L.M., please contact the Soul District Business Association (formerly N/NE Business Association) at 503-841-5032, email Outreach@nnebaportland.org attn: GLBLM,

Or mail at PO Box 11565 Portland, Oregon 97211.

For photos and to view films of GLBLM youth filmmakers

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