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A
West Side Story in black and white with the music but not the dancing,
Black and White is both a romance and a musical bonanza. Written and produced by native
Detroit-ian
Jill Gambaro, it tells the story of two very different music styles as well as two very different cultures. It is the story of how two people from these different places are brought together through their music and then torn apart.
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Jill Gambaro, producer-writer of Black and White
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Growing up in the blue collar area of the Italian part of town, Jill was a child when the riots were taking place. The summer of 67 was one of the hottest ones on record and everyone was irritable and antsy. Tension mounted as the thermostat did and it is this setting that has emerged in the script.
Motown was everywhere and Jill and all her girlfriends were doing their best to imitate the black sounds and black dance, while still trying to highlight their own sounds. “Detroit has a personality all it’s own,” says Jill. “Those who live and work in the city are a unique mixture of cultures and sensibilities that can’t be found anywhere else.”
After attending
Wayne State University, Jill attended
New York University’s screenwriting program. In 1985, she moved to Los Angeles to work as a studio development executive.
At first Jill was content to produce scripts written by others but this story, which had been dwelling in her for over ten years, begged to come out. She realized that many independent movies do not find their audience because there is not a strong eye toward producing them. It’s not only getting the film in the can, but getting the film that will keep the audience in their seats.
Keeping your eye on the audience is what will bring the emotion of the screen to their hearts. “It’s easy to get lost in the giant monster of production and trek through day after day losing sight of the passion that inspired the film. Often you can’t think beyond the immediate crisis.” Jill thinks that in Black and White she has been able to go beyond those limitations.
Having won several awards for her screenwriting and still not getting the break that she needed (because her stories were not the studio blockbusters but the emotional independent films,) Jill decided that it was time to start producing her own material.
In the writing of Black and White, the characters came so alive for her that she could feel and hear them breathing. “I was born to write and make this script.”
The story centers around a young Polish American girl fronting a garage type band and Rufus, her Motown boyfriend. True to the West Side Story theme, these characters must fight against not only the music but the racial segregation and stereotypes of the time. A forerunner of the punk movement, these garage bands competed with the hits of Motown and Barry Gordy less than a mile away. These two styles express what each group is trying to say about themselves and merges to form a unique Detroit sound.
Jill is currently in Detroit and
Traverse City not only seeking funding for her movie but also for casting. “Detroit’s people are unique.” With the economy being as bad as it is, anything that can bring film making to Detroit is encourage and Jill’s desire to help her home town is not only about tax incentives, but about being true to one’s roots and writing what one is passionate about.
Determined to bring a movie about Detroit to the Detroit audience, Jill has focused her efforts on the city’s special charms. “Too many Michigan artists have fled. We need an APB on all Michiganians to come and support their state.”
True to her word, Jill prefers to hire those from her home town and if you are, your resume will go to the top of the pile when she searches for new assistants or casts for new actors. “The work ethic in Detroit and the Midwest is so different from that in Los Angeles.”
Currently she is searching for a music director who understands the music styles and conflicts at the time and for the female lead. She hopes to have the movie shot next summer and be in the theaters by Christmas 2009. “I’m not worried about distribution because there are so many strong elements to this movie that it can do nothing but be a hit.”
We look forward to seeing the movie.
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