The '21 Doors of Legba's Dreams' lead to life transformations
By Elyse Madison
Courtesy of The Famuan , Florida A&M University's award-winning student newspaper.
Dana Dennard, an adjunct psychology professor at Florida A&M University, recently gathered with members of Student Alliance for Cultural Development in Perry-Paige Auditorium for the release of his new movie, "21 Doors of Legba's Dreams."
The movie features original poems by Dennard and poet Black Girl.
"(The movie) is about the path to self-discovery and psychological maturity," says SACD President Amir Shabazz. The junior philosophy student from Fort Myers says the film focuses on the struggles black college students go through to better themselves.
Each character in "21 Doors" has a dream that is symbolic to his or her life. With the help of Legba, the Haitian voodoo god of opportunities and gatekeeper to the spirit world, each character is able to transform his or her life.
At the beginning of the movie, Oshun, one of the main characters, is seen at a party with a group of her friends. She, along with everyone else, is smoking and drinking, and Oshun soon falls asleep and begins to dream. In the dream, a man comes to Oshun and tells her it is up to her to choose life or death.
Oshun later realizes the dream was a representation of a change that is needed in her life. She decides to stop smoking and become more focused on school.
"Life is more than a paycheck," Shabazz says, explaining how students get distracted by life's superficialities. "We get so caught up with paying our rent, maintaining relationships and purchasing textbooks that we do not obtain our higher purpose in life."
Dennard was interested in how black people who knew nothing about African mythology or methodology could dream about the topic. After Thanksgiving about two years ago, his family wanted to watch the Tyler Perry plays. After watching, Dennard took his cue from Perry, witnessing how much his family enjoyed the plays.
"I thought it was very intelligent how Tyler Perry was able to put his ideas on video," Dennard says. "I thought it would be a good idea for me to put my messages into film."
Dennard's film inspired some audience members to think seriously about where they are in their maturation process.
"The movie made me realize that I need to be more disciplined and made me want to pay closer attention to my dreams," says Sabreenah Nicolas, a senior psychology student at FAMU.
Brittney Robinson, a second-year business administration student was also intrigued by Dennard's movie.
"I never knew that you could learn so much from your dreams," she says, calling the movie inspirational. "Dreams are truly a reality."
This is Dennard's first movie, and he is in the process of working on a second. He says he is motivated by the positive feedback from his film.
If anyone with any type of technical skills is interested in helping Dennard with his second film, he invites them to contact him through Amen-Ra's Bookshop, located at 1326 South Adams St. You can also call the bookshop at 681-6228.
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