The Pittsburgh film scene reflects the national one in many ways, including, unfortunately, that Black perspectives are left underrepresented.
Redwood Media Group, established in 2019 by Maurice Redwood, wants to help change that. The local production company will debut a new feature film, House of Stones, on Sat., Jan. 28 during a red carpet premiere at the August Wilson African American Cultural Center.
Starring Redwood, local actor and theater director Monteze Freeland, Malic Maat, and Brenden Peifer, the film was a truly collaborative process. All four actors received writing credit for the conversations that helped shape the story.
House of Stones started with Black Pittsburgh artists contemplating what a story that came from their authentic experiences as Black men in the city would look like. As these conversations progressed, the narrative came into focus: the relationship between Black men and their fathers.
As a result, House of Stones focuses on four brothers who meet for the first time at their father's funeral. The situation becomes even more complicated when they find out that their father left each of them $25,000 in his will.
But there's a catch — in order to get their respective inheritances, the brothers must live in a house together for one month.
Watch a trailer for the film below:
"It's nothing but comedy, shade, drama, love, and a journey of four guys coming together, getting to know one another, and getting to love one another as brothers," Freeland says in a promotional video for the film.
The film doesn’t just rely on an all-Black cast, but an all-Black crew, from the assistant director to the director of photography.
The Redwood Media Group website states a mission to "produce visual content that resonates with viewers, regardless of genre, scale or platform." Based on the process of making House of Stones, Redwood has clearly expanded that mission into ensuring that previously overlooked voices are heard.
House of Stones. 7:30 p.m. Red carpet at 6 p.m. Sat., Jan. 28. August Wilson African American Cultural Center. 980 Liberty Ave., Downtown. $25-50. theredwoodmediagroup.com/house-of-stones-film
House of Stones delivers Black-led narrative about four brothers and a funeral
