ST. LOUIS SUPERMAN - BRUCE FRANKS JR. INTERVIEW
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The powerful Oscar nominated documentary short, St Louis Superman is coming to the small screen.
St. Louis Superman was one of the most gripping short docs released in 2019, earning an Oscar nomination for Best Documentary (Short Subject). Directed by the award-winning filmmaker of A Suitable Girl, Smriti Mundrha, and Canada’s own Sami Khan, the doc follows activist and battle rapper Bruce Franks Jr. in Ferguson, Missouri.
"St. Louis Superman" is set in St. Louis and is the real-life story of Bruce Franks Jr., a battle rapper, activist and state legislator. Known as Superman to his constituents he is an offbeat political figure who has turned immense personal tragedy into a trajectory to effect change in the daily violence around him.
Thirty years ago his nine-year-old brother was shot and killed before his eyes and the trauma continues. This powerful film set in the mayhem of Ferguson is a page ripped out of today's American life. Bruce Franks gets elected to the overwhelmingly white and Republican Missouri House of Representatives, and he needs to pass a vital bill.
This short film which seems to capture a lifetime in 28 minutes has won awards at Tribeca, Hot Docs, Big Sky, Traverse City, AFI Docs, and Indy Shorts. The film was produced by AJE Witness and was the first acquisition by non-fiction executive Sheila Nevins at MTV Documentary Films.
To watch "St. Louis Superman" is to be submerged into the daily life of Bruce Franks Jr.– you forget there are cameras around. In fact, the filmmakers actually moved in with Franks – so they were almost like flies on the wall and got the honest, searing film that they did.
I spoke with Bruce Franks Jr about his incredible journey and how making this film literally saved his life.