Rear
When a teacher leaves bruises on a child, an objecting mother unintentionally starts a debate on the use of school corporal punishment in her southern black community.
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Filmmaker Statement

I was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi. At the age of six, my mother found violent bruises on me as a result of a paddling from a teacher for talking too much in class. I don't remember a lot about what occurred after my mother found bruises on me, but what I do remember was the look of anger and frustration on my mother's face. She made a lot of phone calls and had a lot of meetings to get to the bottom of what occurred. As an adult, what I find most interesting about that experience, is that my mother still sees the value of paddling in school. I wanted to create this short film to give visibility to the people who make up the many small towns in America that are so often overlooked. In particular, this story is through the lens of a Black woman and her son. This film addresses the relevant and timely topic of child rearing, specifically within the Black community and focuses on how corporal punishment has a unique impact on Black students whose parents often support it as a disciplinary tactic. We handled every actor with care, especially our main child actor. He worked closely with a Stunt Coordinator to ensure his safety performing his stunt on camera. We also used a body double for the bruise reveal scene. We wanted to be authentic exposing the damage done to children but also wanted to be respectful of our actor. The question posed in REAR is whether the tool of corporal punishment is itself worse than the very thing it seeks to correct. Black Americans have a long and complicated history with physical abuse, assault and battery at the hands of the state. REAR is a story of cultural or internal reflection and the choices we make as to how to discipline our children.

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Duration 20 Minutes
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