- When an African America teenage boy is unexpectedly gunned down on his front lawn, the neighborhood, all too familiar with drive-by shootings and inner city turf wars, is quick to make assumptions about what might have happened. But the truth is revealed only through memories of the teen's little sister who recalls a much more layered picture of her older brother.
- When an African American teenage boy is unexpectedly gunned down on his front lawn, the neighborhood - all too familiar with drive-by shootings and inner city turf wars - is quick to make assumptions about what might have happened. But the truth is revealed only through memories of the teen's little sister who recalls a much more layered picture of her older brother.
Who We Are is a story about how the people around us perceive us, based on their own truths. It sheds light on the senseless gun violence that plagues many from the inner city. This film explores not only the aftermath of an untimely murder, but also takes a look at the inner struggles and decisions that a 17-year-old believes he has to make for his survival and for that of his family, which ultimately lead to his own demise. When we set out to create Who We Are, we wanted to tell a complete story addressing multiple points of view, in order to allow the viewers to see the story from more than one perspective.
In these times of fear-mongering and hate-driven, divisive politics, a story like 'Who We Are' is an important story to tell because it calls its viewers to challenge their own intrinsic bias and pre-conceived notions while making judgements about people who they see as 'the others' in their neighborhoods, cities and country.
Set in a lower income neighborhood, this film touches upon the themes of self-identity, survival in oppressive environments and sacrifice for family against all odds. The main message that the film attempts to convey to its viewers, is that often times situations cannot be pigeon-holed as black or white, and sometimes good people do bad things.
We chose the Virtual Reality medium to tell our story because VR allows for a much more immersive storytelling, putting the viewer at the heart of the story, with a chance to experience the tragic event from a diverse, yet omniscient point of view. The viewer is invited into a neighborhood that they may not otherwise get a chance to explore firsthand and rewarded with a 360 visual and contextual understanding of the story. People will take away different things from the film, but the main themes addressed will resonate with all.
Above all, we hope that with this story will offer viewers a more holistic understanding of life experienced by people who live not so far away from their home.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content