An Evening with Walter Thompson-Hernández | If I Go Will They Miss Me

To Journey Ave Presents: If I Go Will They Miss Me - Screening + Live Q&A with the Director. BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND! Following our sold-out Toronto screening of If I Go Will They Miss Me, we're bringing this powerful film back to the big screen for a special second screening with a live Q & A with Walter Thompson-Hernández all the way from sunny LA. This next gathering is an opportunity to continue those conversations, connect through independent Black cinema, and hear first hand from those involved in createing it. EVENT DETAILS 6:30 PM — Doors Open 7:00 PM — Feature Screening 8:30 PM — Live Q & A with Walter Thompson-Hernández moderated by Toni Francis DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT As children, my friends and I used to race the airplanes that flew above our homes in southeast LA. The mythical planes in the sky, unbeknownst to us, were damaging our community through jet fuel dumps, toxic gas, and other environmental impacts. We inhaled their poisonous fumes while lionizing their presence. It wasn’t until I was an adult that this contradiction became clear to me. As a member of the community where my film is set, I know how important care and authenticity are in telling this story. Lil Ant and Big Ant are the embodiment of both the boy I was growing up and of the men in my family. I am deeply interested in portraying them with honesty – brutal and beautiful. In film and in popular culture, Watts and South Central have been characterized by crime, violence, and gangs. Rarely do we think of these as places where lives of joy and nuance unfold. IF I GO WILL THEY MISS ME invites us into a world that feels valuable. This story will reintroduce a neighborhood and people long characterized by tropes that never quite captured our experience. Through an intimate, poetic, and surrealist visual language, I will explore our trauma, our joy, and our truth.