Compensation (film)
Encyclopedia
Compensation is award-winning independent film about a young African American couple at the beginning and end of the twentieth century. The film is produced and directed by Zeinabu irene Davis and the screen play was written by Marc Arthur Chéry. It stars Michelle A. Banks and John Earl Jelks in the leading roles. The film was shot throughout Chicago
beginning July 1993 and wrapped up early August.
The film premièred at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival
and ran in the Dramatic Feature category. The film was screened in San Diego, California
at the Museum of Photographic Arts
.http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/soc/dzdavispremiere.htm. It was also screened at IFP
the Independent Film Market in New York, New York and the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles
.
, the unique drama explores aspects of Black culture in both turn of the century and present day Chicago in two parallel love stories, both about the relationship between a deaf woman and a hearing man. The narrative revolves about two couples, Malindy and Arthur, and Malaika and Nico, respectively taking place at the beginning and end of the twentieth century. Both pairs revel in the splendor or romance and a possible lifetime commitment only to be forced to deal with the dreaded disease of their difference times: tuberculosis
and AIDS
. The multi-layered film tackles various issues that arise in the relationship of the "mixed" couples.
Atiba Y. Jali, served as the contemporary music score composer. He used instruments that are not as common such as the balafou, berimbau
and yidaki but also included the drums and flute.
and DVD
distributed by Women Make Movies.http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm26.shtml, http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm26.shtml.
1999 Reel Black Award for Outstanding Film, Black Film and Video Network
15th Annual IFP/West Independent Spirit Awards, Nominated Best First Feature Film Under $500,000
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
beginning July 1993 and wrapped up early August.
The film premièred at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
and ran in the Dramatic Feature category. The film was screened in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
at the Museum of Photographic Arts
Museum of Photographic Arts
The Museum of Photographic Arts or MoPA is a museum in San Diego’s Balboa Park. First founded in 1974, MoPA opened in 1983. MoPA is one of three museums in the US dedicated exclusively to the collection and preservation of photography, with a mission to inspire, educate and engage the broadest...
.http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/soc/dzdavispremiere.htm. It was also screened at IFP
IFP
IFP can stand for:* International Federation of Poker* Interwise Food Portal* Independent Feature Project* "The Illinois Functional Programming Interpreter", A.D. Robison, Proc 1987 SIGPLAN Conf on Interpreters and Interpretive Techniques , pp...
the Independent Film Market in New York, New York and the Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
.
Plot
Inspired by a 1906 poem from early African American writer, Paul Laurence DunbarPaul Laurence Dunbar
Paul Laurence Dunbar was a seminal African American poet of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Dunbar gained national recognition for his 1896 "Ode to Ethiopia", one poem in the collection Lyrics of Lowly Life....
, the unique drama explores aspects of Black culture in both turn of the century and present day Chicago in two parallel love stories, both about the relationship between a deaf woman and a hearing man. The narrative revolves about two couples, Malindy and Arthur, and Malaika and Nico, respectively taking place at the beginning and end of the twentieth century. Both pairs revel in the splendor or romance and a possible lifetime commitment only to be forced to deal with the dreaded disease of their difference times: tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
and AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
. The multi-layered film tackles various issues that arise in the relationship of the "mixed" couples.
Cast
- Michelle A. Banks as Malindy Brown and Malaika Brown
- John Earl Jelks as Arthur Jones and Nico Jones
- Christopher Smith as William Young and dancer
- K. Lynn Stephens as Aminata Brown
- Nirvana Cobb as Tildy
- Kevin L. Davis as Tyrone
Filming
The entire film was shot in Chicago, Illinois to play a tribute to the director's previous residence and to expose the audience to the beautiful city. Well-known filming locations within Chicago.- Ephphatha Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Deaf
- Chicago Public Library, Legler Branch
- Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore
- Northwestern University, Evanston
- Salsedo Press, Chicago
- The Warehouse, Chicago
Music
Reginald R. Robinson, a noted ragtime composer and performer, served as the film's period music score composer. He incorporated the piano and mandolin into all his compositions for the film.Atiba Y. Jali, served as the contemporary music score composer. He used instruments that are not as common such as the balafou, berimbau
Berimbau
The berimbau is a single-string percussion instrument, a musical bow, from Brazil. The berimbau's origins are not entirely clear, but there is not much doubt about its African origin, as no Indigenous Brazilian or European people use musical bows, and very similar instruments are played in the...
and yidaki but also included the drums and flute.
Film Festivals
- Sundance Film FestivalSundance Film FestivalThe Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
- Toronto International Film FestivalToronto International Film FestivalThe Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
- Atlanta Film and Video Festival
Critical Response
The film was overall well-received by many notable film critics and enjoyed a positive reception both critics and moviegoers.- Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times hailed Compensation "beautiful and poignant" and "illuminating and captivating".
- Ian Grey of City Paper, Baltimore's Free Alternative Weekly, praised Compensation as "brilliant".
- David Elliott of The San Diego Union Tribune called the film a "classy achievement".
- The infamous critical Roger EbertRoger EbertRoger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
praised the film "dreamy, atmosphere reveries, rich in humor and social observation" as well as "enchanting".
- Rick Lyman of The New York Times noted the film is "structurally daring".
- Greg Dimitriadis called the film "...a powerful film. It is boldly experimental. Illness and death are presented as forces that persons cannot control. The death of a loved one is blunted by the gift of love itself. That gift compensates for life’s losses. In showing this, Davis’s film brings great dignity and respect to the situations of African American women and men. At the same time, her film honors African American culture and history."
- Elizabeth AlexanderElizabeth AlexanderElizabeth Alexander is an Australian actress with a number of high profile credits in film, television and theatre.-Personal life:...
noted the poem that inspired the film "should move this very contemporary filmmaker narratively to the past but technically forward to innovation".
Distribution
The film is available on VHSVHS
The Video Home System is a consumer-level analog recording videocassette standard developed by Victor Company of Japan ....
and DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
distributed by Women Make Movies.http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm26.shtml, http://www.wmm.com/filmcatalog/makers/fm26.shtml.
Awards and accolades
1999 Gordon Parks Directing Award, Independent Feature Project, New York1999 Reel Black Award for Outstanding Film, Black Film and Video Network
15th Annual IFP/West Independent Spirit Awards, Nominated Best First Feature Film Under $500,000