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It's A Demo | Reelblack's Mixtape Video From 2003

1,430 views · Published 19 December 2017 · 55:50 · Indexed 23 October 2026

Channel: Reelblack One · 2017 · Film & Animation

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I was going through old stuff and found the VHS master of IT'S A DEMO, a compilation mixtape I hosted with John Canada Terrell in 2003.

The backstory was that in 2003, I submitted a short film to Urbanworld film Festival and was not accepted.  In reaction, we put together this 1 hour compilation of my work and burned 100 copies on the now-obsolete VCD format.  I conspicuously left copies all over the festival, and handed copies to some influential attendees.

I got ZERO reaction.  Not exactly zero, for next couple of festivals, I would run into filmmakers who said they enjoyed the film. Lee Daniels never sent me a note, but literally years later, he said he enjoyed the Monsters Ball parody artwork.

All of the films (with the exception of Hardest Part) can be found in better quality elsewhere on my channel.  But I totally forgot the interstitial stuff that we included on this version.  toking back on it, its interesting to see the swagger of young Mike D. and recognize, for the most part, I'm still the same person.

Postscript.  In 2008, I finally did get work accepted into Urbanworld.  Actually, I was the only individual filmmaker with two projects screening at the festival.  While we didn't win any awards, one of the judges suggested I enter the CNN Report Film Festival (which we won). Also, that 2008 Urbanworld Festival was where Ava DuVernay and I both screened work. Three years later, we would do business together when she invited Reelblack to be a founding partner in ARRAY.

So that humbled me.  

Moral: Stick to your dreams.  You never know what may happen...

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