James Alexander Warren on the set of ‘Sequence.’ COURTESY: SEQUENCE FILMS
“Sequence,” a collection of four short films written and directed by James Alexander Warren and produced by Robbie Fisher, will premiere Wednesday at the Malco Commons.
Warren, Fisher and their team will host the premiere.
“I really wanted an event specifically for the film, to build an audience and to continue getting my name out there, of course,” Warren said.
Oxford is just one of several locations in which the films will be premiered. They will also have premieres in Jackson, Mississippi, Los Angeles and New York.
The artists involved include David Aaron Baker (Boardwalk Empire, Melinda and Melinda, Homeland) from New York City and Toronto-based musician-songwriter Akua Carson, among others.
“We had a really great (almost) entirely Mississippi cast and crew on the film,” Fisher said. “A few of the lead actors were from other states, and they were amazing. Making a film with people is something that bonds you with your team, and they become your film family during the experience and will always be a part of something you created together. It is really special.”
“Sequence” was shot over the course of one year and six months, primarily in Jackson and Yazoo City as well as some surrounding cities.
“The film was shot primarily in Mississippi with the help of a lot of friends from and in Mississippi,” Warren said. ¨However, just because it was made in Mississippi, I still did not want to be overtly Southern. I wanted it to be something that could work nationally.¨
Warren wrote the films while he was on tour in Europe playing drums for singer Dent May. The film is a series of four short films about three junkyard workers, a hyperactive alcoholic, a priest throwing dinner party, an amateur filmmaker and the women around their lives. The idea of this serial type of presentation for the file was inspired by Warren´s admiration for the idea of “a series of works.”
“I really like the idea of a series of works. Four short films seemed like a good way for me to practice directing and writing,” Warren said. “I had decided that I needed to take a different break after the two short films that I had written before, and I went on tour and wrote six short stories, four of which were used to make ‘Sequence.’”
Among the many people who worked on the project from Oxford are Carson Clover, a filmmaker, and Anna Benefield of Southside Gallery, who worked public relations for the film.
“There are big things in the future for Alex Warren, and I want to help and work with him in any way I can,” Benefield said.
Everyone is welcomed to come to the premier and meet some of the team that worked on this project. Students, especially those who are interested in filmmaking or like to watch films, are highly encouraged to attend the event, and Benefield expresses that the invitation is extended to everyone.
“I hope that this film will inspire students at Ole Miss to expand their minds creatively and inspire them to fulfill their own dreams and not just pursue a nine to five career,” Benefield said.
“One thing Alex and I talk about often is that we both are fortunate to come from a state which has an incredibly rich literary history, and that we are inspired to build on that tradition and employ film’s multi-faceted art form—with its visual, auditory and sensory components – to add to our rich storytelling legacy in a visually artistic and stunning way which can captivate and transport audiences,” Fisher said. “I think we have done that with the ‘Sequence’ films, and I can’t wait to start sharing them.”
The premiere takes place at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Malco Commons, with an after party at Ajax. Tickets are $10 and are available online at sequencethefilmoxford.bpt.me and at the door.
