Educational Media Reviews Online

Directed by Joanna Hock, this film will keep the viewer interested from the very first moment. Within the first 60 seconds, the film shares its story, its characters, and its heart. The camera focuses on six students at Charlotte’s Northwest School of the Arts. They have been offered to produce and audition for the first high school performance of The Color Purple. They will be working under the direction of Corey Mitchell, Tony Award Winner for Excellence in Theater Education. Six students will be in the final cast. We follow their journeys from audition to callbacks, rehearsals to performance.

The camera work and editing parallels beautifully with the elements of the story. At times the camera is like a fly on the wall, watching for vulnerable moments. Most times, the camera is moving from shot to shot, and capturing a multitude of moments in the lives of the students. For example, the camera focuses on the moment the call-back list is placed on the bulletin board. We don’t linger, the scene opens with Mitchell putting up the sheet, everyone checks, and then joy, disappointment, happiness, perhaps defeat. The camera is there in the moment but quickly moves to a shot of talking with a student in another space. The camera is always in motion, which balances with the energy of the students and their passion for the work. There is an arc in the film when one of the cast members loses a family member during opening night weekend. The message that the arts are healing, is loud and clear.

The film does not end there, it goes on to look at statistics and reports on arts and education programs. Programs can go from fully funded to no funding at all -- and it takes these types of experiences to make an impact. Their journey takes the students to a large theater conference, where they will audition for multiple theater companies over a weekend, including a performance of The Color Purple one evening. The students comment that without this experience, they would have never believed it possible to attend and perform at a national conference.

Purple Dreams is an example of a documentary where art is used to engage and challenge, often with a focus on marginalized groups. Theater, by its very nature, is a great vehicle for engagement-it allows permission to be open and vulnerable, try new things, and take on challenges. Ms. Hoak has provided an intimate portrait of how art and life are intertwined. This film is highly recommended for colleges and high school programs, as well as arts education organizations.

Documentary titles that deal with similar subjects: Shakespeare Behind Bars, Caesar Must Die, Spettacolo, Shakespeare High, and OT Our Town.

Awards:
Jury Award, Outstanding Achievement in Social Impact, Stony Brook Film Festival; Audience Choice Award & Best of Fest, River Run International Film Festival; Jury Award, Most Inspiring Documentary Feature, Hollywood Film Festival

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