HOLLYWOOD—HELLO AMERICA!  Things are turning upside down not only in the nation, but in Tinseltown, as well.  It is obvious from various cinema boxoffice returns, people are hungering for a change, something different.  A good example of this turn of events is the film “Avatar.”  This type of production has forced every producer in the business to really examine, the marketability, of a film project before approaching a production company or independent investors.  As for Washington, those who have taken President Obama as a lightweight are suddenly experiencing his toughness in a way never expected from a national leader before.  And he is doing it before the American people on television.

Never before in the history of this country, have people been glued to their televisions sets, listening to a president, a man who is obviously unafraid to face the nation, and taking on any question that his opponents might have.  His unflinching, articulate responses threw his opposers off center, and it was overwhelmingly obvious that Obama was “the” man in charge.  Film documentarians and writers were, without a doubt, eating this whole scene up.  After all, this is the kind of stuff that makes darn good theater or films.

When I called, Rich Carson, a young producer whose passion is making political-type films, he was excited about what is going on today in this country.  “America,” he believes, “is coming alive again.  All the crap that we were producing for so long, are about to see its end.  People want to be entertained, but they, also, more than ever, have a need to watch stories that realistically represent their lives—their trials and tribulations, in a way that will forge a meaningful change in their lives—in this country.”

Carson went on to emphasize that what is going on in this nation is also affecting producers, directors and actors of color in a way never experienced previously.  “People, generally,” he noted, “are getting a bit tired of some of these stereotypical filled movies, produced by men and women from the so-called hood, whose only desire is to make a quick buck.  They couldn’t care less, if they are reinforcing the sick and staid image that so many of the late civil rights leaders worked so hard to eliminate from our industry.  The making of “Big Momma” films do nothing to bring people together—they simply continue the view that it serves a purpose for the low class or the uneducated who will accept, almost, anything.”

There is no doubt that what Obama, as president, will affect a change not only in Washington, but the way we see ourselves from what we produce on television and in films.  It’s a welcome change; it has been too long suffering through ignorance and excuses for good stories that might inspire us all to a level of hope.