Mr. Nice Guy?

Wow, I guess it’s been a long time since we last spoke so let me start off by saying Happy Halloween, Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Kwanzaa, MLK, Valentine’s, Presidents Day, Groundhog Day, and any other day I missed.

As you can see this whole blogging thing isn’t really my cup of tea. But it isn’t because I don’t care about y’all or that I don’t want to talk to you. I’m just kind of old school when it comes to these matters, and I feel that there’s no need to speak if I don’t have anything to say, because I’m the last person who wants to get on anyone’s nerves. I mean, I’m sure that between travel advertisements, penis enhancements, and fictitious vixens who want to send you their picture, you all get enough junk-email without me adding to the mix. Plus, I’ve written a few that weren’t ever posted because the powers that be feared that I would be coming off as too nice, and that’s when I usually reply, “It’s because I’m a nice person, got damn it!” But for some reason I’m always misunderstood.

However, I must say that I have truly been overwhelmed by the support and the responses that we have gotten for our film; therefore, I get the impression that you guys want to hear a word or two from me, so here it is. But before we get into any of that let me take a moment to congratulate a few Georgia filmmakers who are doing some great things. Not that they’ll care, but it’s still the right thing to do, right? So let’s do it. Athens, Georgia filmmaker, Jamie Ponsoldt, whose film “Off the Black” has been getting great reviews. Congrats. Also to the wonderful people at Rainforest Films who dominated the box-office with their film “Stomp the Yard.” Congratulations are in order. Also to the guys who made “The Signal” which picked up a distribution deal at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. I’m happy for you. And last, but definitely not least, to the makers of the documentary “Darius Goes West,” I really admire everything that you’ve done and hope for your continued success. By the way, for those of you who haven’t seen “Darius Goes West” I encourage you to find out where you can view it, because it’s a great film and it’s for an even greater cause. And then once you throw Tyler Perry’s “Daddy’s Little Girls” into the mix, you have to admit that Georgia filmmakers seem to be in style right now so you know I’m trying to jump on the bandwagon right?

“So what’s going on with me?” you ask. Nothing. . . Not a got darn thing. Just kidding. I’m currently featured in a small article of the February/March issue of Complex Magazine so go and pick that up, because I’m sure that it’ll be a collector’s item someday. And yeah, they’ve got me in there looking like the angry black guy, but that’s okay, because nothing could be further from the truth. Dare I say, “I’m in a pretty good mood these days.” At least for an angry black guy.

“Somebodies” has been nominated for a PRISM award for its positive message against alcoholism and substance abuse, I just won Best New Director at the Pan African Film Festival, which was one of the weirdest experiences I ever had, because we recently played the AFI film festival in L.A. and I met a lot of cool African filmmakers that were actually from Africa, and then I went to the Pan-African Film Festival and everybody there was from Chicago? And tru me, you haven’t lived until you see a brother from Chicago wearing a dashiki and eating nachos with a white woman on his arm at the same time. We have truly overcome.

Anyway, back to me. I’ve got a loosely based autobiography coming out in January 2008, “Somebodies” the movie will be coming out sometime this year, and most importantly, “Somebodies” the Television Series will be coming to BET later this year. That’s right. Scottie, Diva, Marlo, Aunt Agnes, Reverend Hill, and the rest of the gang will be coming back for round two. Stronger and crazier than ever doing things that you ain’t supposed to be doing on television (just like how I used the word “ain’t” in a sentence). I’d say life is good, and I have you to thank for that.

See, I know it’s the latest trend for people to come out and tell everyone how much they appreciate their fans or the audience or whatever, but it’s really bigger than that for me.

Like, right now you have that whole Barack Obama thing going on, right, and I’m noticing that a lot of people seem to be taking this opportunity to express their true “feelings” on “black culture” shall we say. And there seems to be a lot of “categorizing” going on whether fair or not. Which is fine. That’s life. I guess certain categories actually do exist. However, I happen to think that there’s a certain amount of beauty that can be found in each and every one of them. . . Although some more beautiful than others. “I don’t B stupit.” (Joke)

The point is that I wanted to create a setting where all of these “categories” had to dwell amongst each other as we do in real life, and that’s why I’m so excited about the television series, because it will give us the chance to entertain while dealing with subject matter and issues that need to be explored and discussed. And I honestly think that the people who have enjoyed the film the most understood what I was trying to do. And more than anything that’s what I appreciate. The people who were able to look beyond the surface and get both the joke and the point.

And for those of you out there who can’t decide which one you hate most, my movie or my guts, I respect your opinion, and only ask that you remember that these are pieces of a puzzle, and hopefully, you’ll appreciate the bigger picture someday and judge the entire body of work as opposed to one bit of it.

So I say all of that to say this, “Get ready.” Put the women and children to bed, run for cover, and write your wills, because as I’ve already promised, “Things are about to get very interesting.” Trust me people, global warming does exist. Happens every time I step outside.

Hasta luego,

Hadjii

Back from CineVegas and Trust Me, Sometimes One Plus One Equals Damn.

Every year a film festival takes place in Las Vegas aptly titled “CineVegas.” And CineVegas likes to refer to itself as “The World’s Most Dangerous Film Festival.” Now when I first heard this I thought, “Hmm, the world’s most dangerous film festival. That’s a catchy little hook line.” And then I didn’t give it much thought after that.

Well, ladies and gentlemen, I just returned from CineVegas and take my word for it. When they say, “It’s the World’s Most Dangerous Film Festival,” they mean that shit! That festival is hazardous to your health and I’ve got the liver damage to prove it.

Now I’m not going to go into all the details, but I will say this: as soon as my plane touched down, I was greeted by a gentleman who took my luggage and told me that he was going to take me to the Palms Casino where I’d be staying. So we walk out of the airport and low and behold, there’s this big ole limousine waiting for me, and I remember thinking, “Finally! Someone who gets it!” So I hop in and the guy drops me off at the Palms, and the rest is as they say, history. Not history in the sense that I did some groundbreaking shit or something, but history in the sense that apparently a film festival took place, but I don’t remember it! All I can say is that when I woke up Sunday morning after the Closing Night Party, I looked over at the nightstand and saw that I had French-fries floating in a glass of water. I didn’t think too much of it until I looked over at the other nightstand and saw a straw in a bottle of ketchup. Now I’m not a smart man, but sometimes one plus one just equals damn.

Nah, but seriously, CineVegas is an amazing film festival that is very well run and features several great films and easily accessible celebrities and events. We all had a wonderful time! And on that note I’d like to say hats off to the masterminds behind the festival, Trevor Groth and Mike Plante. Thank you so much for having us. You did an outstanding job. Morgan Tegtow. You are the man! Thanks for putting up with us. And to my dear sweet Mary Polidoro: you were fantastic. Thanks for all of your help. And to all of the volunteers and everybody else who helped us out, we really appreciate it. And speaking of we, I’d like to say gratitude to all of the cast-members who were able to make it out, including Patt Brown, Kaira Whitehead, Chris Burns, Anthony Hyatt, IronE Singleton, and Nick Lewis. (Next stop Chicago in August.) And last, but definitely not least, I’d like to thank everybody who came out and watched the film. Hope you enjoyed it.

Until then,

Hadjii

Photos from CineVegas

Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, I personally want to welcome you to our new home, our new place of business, yes, our new web-site! Ain't it perty?! Shots go out to our interior decorator and new web-designer, Eric Hollinshead. You're a genius. You remind me of myself.

Now that that's done, I'd like to send a big ole thank you to all of you. Yes, all of you for you have made my life a beautiful thing. We've played Sundance in Utah, rocked Cleveland, dazzled Sarasota, Florida, killed Roger Ebert's Overlooked Film Festival, and even managed to impress Parisians in France. Do you know what that means? That means I've been drinking a lot of wine, become a heartthrob for senior citizens, and have gotten terrific love advice from Mormons. Life is good, . . but it's about to get better, because guess what city's next on the list? . . Las Vegas!

That's right. The World's Most Dangerous Film Festival, as they like to call themselves, is about to get even crazier because "Somebodies" is coming to Vegas for the CineVegas Film Festival. June 15th and 16th Hadjii will be on the strip, and trust me, the world ain't ready. Because not only will I be there, but I'm bringing the comedic geniuses Patt Brown, Nick Lewis, Tyler Craig, and Doo-Doo Brown with me. BUT I'M NOT DONE! Cause guess who else is coming?! Kaira Whitehead, Carlos Davis, Anthony Hyatt, Chris Burns, and IronE Singleton! All of us in the same place at the same time! It's on! And believe me, you don't want to miss this.

So if you've seen the movie and want to see it again, come hang out with us in Vegas. If you haven't seen the movie, but are in need of a good time, come see us in Vegas. And last, but definitely not least, if you've seen the movie and enjoyed our little project and have friends in the Vegas area, tell them to come check us out because we're going to do our best to make it worth their while. And while we're at it, for those of you in Vegas who are checking out this site, do your best to make me feel at home. Meaning show me a good time. Red carpet. Roses at my feet. Crush my grapes. Make my wine. You know how I like it.

Again, I say thank you to you all, and I'd like to end this entry (the first of many) with a small request. They say, "A real man is strong enough to admit he needs help." And I'm so real that I can honestly say, "I need a bunch of help." But not just any kind of help. I need YOUR HELP. WE need your help. America's a democracy. That means the people select who's in power. And I want you to endorse, support, and ride with us!

Please continue to check out this site. As you can see, it's still under construction, but we've got a swimming pool, a couple of bars, and some furniture on the way. Okay, maybe not. But seriously, there will be more photos, film updates, and a blog coming soon. Stay tuned people. We're about to make it interesting. Win, lose, or draw, we're about to make it very interesting.