Dreyana Grooms

16-year-old Dreyana Grooms' summer break is interrupted when she's implicated in a deadly crime. This event radically alters the course of her entire young adult life.

Pitch

Synopsis

Set on Chicago's Low End, a near-South Side area which earned its nickname during the '50s and '60s low-income and public housing boom, the film tells the true story of how a violent event turned Dreyana "Dre" Grooms' teen life - and the lives of those close to her - upside down.

In a rugged urban environment where acts of brutality are all too common, loyalty is more than a virtue; it spells survival for Dre and members of her close-knit gang. We first meet Dre on the fateful day of her 16th birthday, before she has sparked a series of events that will land her first-degree and attempted murder charges.

What starts as a fun summer night out with Dre and her friends becomes threatening in an armed confrontation with a group of opposing gang members. The altercation ends when Dre's friend Sonny shoots and kills one of the rivals.

A day later, Dre and another member of her crew, Kenneth, both of whom were witnesses to the shooting, are picked up on suspicion of the murder based on false testimony given to police by one of the victim's friends. Honouring the code of the streets, Dre and her co-defendant decide not to snitch on Sonny, and, maintaining their innocence, spend the next three years locked up awaiting trial.

While Dre's challenges are the main focal point, the film also charts the effect that one young woman’s struggle has on the lives of her family and community; for example, we see Dre's mother Penny struggling to maintain her sanity as she deals this new reality, and we also witness her friends' shifting loyalties in the face of criminal justice.

Director statement

The project is born out of the powerful and unexpected creative union between myself and my co-writer Dreyana, who has entrusted this story to me as a director, though she will remain active in the creation of every frame, preserving the finished work's integrity and authenticity.

Dreyana's motto during the writing: "keep it raw." As in, this is the no Hollywood bullshit, unfiltered version of the events, free from sentimentality or didactic editorializing. Rather than imposing a teacherly or condescending message, our style is observational with a strong journalistic foundation (our process included interviewing more than 50 people associated with the events). As a viewer, we let you go wherever you want with it.

Additionally, our script highlights specificity versus universality and scrutinizes the system as opposed to the individual, placing the burden of virtue squarely back on the powerful people who run the punitive institutions of prosecution and incarceration. In parallel with this, we examine a young woman's coming to terms with her decisions and asking herself "Where do I go from here?"

Director biography

A Brazilian-born, Chicago-based filmmaker known for his feature films Porto (2016) and Double Play: James Benning and Richard Linklater (2013), he is the recipient of more than a dozen international awards and honours, including a Golden Lion at the 2013 Venice Film Festival for the Best Documentary on Cinema. Klinger's films have been shown at hundreds of major festivals worldwide such as SXSW, IFFR, BFI London, San Sebastián International Film Festival, Viennale, FIDMarseille, BAFICI, and CPH:DOX. Porto, which is executive produced by Jim Jarmusch and stars Anton Yelchin, was acquired for theatrical distribution in over forty markets.

Huidige status

We are in late development. Script, schedule, and other materials are ready. Currently, we are attaching cast and looking ahead to start preparations in spring 2021, with filming happening as early as summer.

Goals

To find partners in diverse markets where the American Black Lives Matter movement has struck a chord. We want to legitimize the project as international and increase visibility and distribution opportunities worldwide. Other goals include attaching a European sales agent and seeking out soft money possibilities for post and other financing.