A Halifax documentary filmaker with two Academy Awards under his belt is off to the Sundance Film Festival, Friday evening, for his collaboration with one of the most famous basketball players in the world.
Ben Proudfoot spent the last three years co-directing The Baddest Speech Writer of All with Stephen Curry.
It is about Clarence B. Jones, who was a political strategist and speechwriter for Martin Luther King Jr., and his behind-the-scenes view of the Civil Rights movement.
In an interview with our newsroom from Utah, Proudfoot tells us he is very excited but nervous for the film to premier.
“I always get nervous before a premier,” says Proudfoot. “I’m just excited for people. It’s just a very special film that we’ve worked really hard on.”
How it started
Proudfoot and Curry met when they worked together on his Oscar winning short documentary, The Queen of Basketball, Currey as an executive producer.
“It was a fantastic project,” says Proudfoot. “Not long after that project, I got a from Stephen and is team and they had an idea for our next project together. I was very excited by that and wanted to hear all about it.”
Proudfoot says Jones, now 95, is a mentor to Curry. The Baddest Speech Writer of All is an opportunity to give Jones an opportunity to talk about his memories.
“These amazing, iconic moments in the Civil Rights movement to life from a very particular angle. Which is from behind the scenes. How it all happened from King’s inner circle,” explains Proudfoot.
“I thought that was a brilliant idea.”
Source: Ben Proudfoot
The film was Jones’ debut as a director.
Proudfoot says he was a very fast learner and had a fascinating idea on how to portray the infamous I Have a Dream speech.
“[His] impulse was …how do we move the camera so that we can get around behind him to see if from Clarence’s point of view. It’s just a question I would never ask. So, in order to do that, we had to turn to animation,” says Proudfoot.
Proudfoot adds, he’s never done animation before, but despite taking years and 3,000 watercolor paintings, it is beautiful.
Lesson to be learned
In the film, Jones leaves his job in Hollywood to go join a movement, which involves a big pay cut.
However, with it, comes purpose and meaning, according to Proudfoot, who thinks that lesson is extremely relevant to today – go with the flow or take the bull by the horns and make changes.
“Speak up and speak out and put your talents and your time to use to make the world a better, more equitable place like Clarence did,” says Proudfoot.
Online screenings of The Baddest Speech Writer of All are between January 29 and February 2.
