Today we’d like to introduce you to Alonge Hawes.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Alonge. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was dismayed by how little representation there was of African American millennials in mainstream entertainment. In 2016, before shows like Atlanta and Insecure, and movies like Black Panther, there was a dearth of authentic content centered around black diaspora. I decided that instead of sitting around waiting for someone to create content that I would like to watch, that I would instead create the content myself. Thus Blue Collar Hustle was born. Blue Collar Hustle is a fictional digital series that I created, wrote, executive produced, co-directed, and starred in, which follows the journey of four young African American men who attempt to start their own business. Blue Collar Hustle premiered on Youtube in February of 2017, and since then has been streamed on several different platforms including Seeka.tv, KweliTV, and GoIndieTV. In October of 2018, the second season of Blue Collar Hustle reached number 1 on Seeka.tv’s most-watched series list; leading Seeka.tv and myself to form a partnership that resulted in the upcoming Seeka.tv original program Black On Both Sides. A series that I will once again create, write, direct, and star in. Black On Both Sides is described as a series about “Young African American millennials who are attempting to exist in a setting where blackness must come secondary to business”. The series will explore themes of Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome, Pan-Africanism, and the ever-evolving meaning of blackness in a post-Obama administration America.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Some of the struggles that I have faced have been continuing to find ways to properly finance a digital series. As an independent content creator with no major financial backing, it had been a challenge to make sure that my content reaches to meet the cinematic requirements to be both interesting and impressive. Myself and my production team pay for 90% of filming costs, location rentals, and actor fees out of our own pocket. Sheer determination for my creative vision has kept us afloat many days where things looked bleak from a financial perspective
Please tell us about A Million Stories One Pen Productions.
My company, A Million Stories One Pen Productions, has to date produced 2 digital series compromising 24 episodes (Blue Collar Hustle: Season 1 compromised 6 episodes while season 2 compromised 10 episodes. The upcoming Series Black On Both Sides will compromise 8 episodes for season 1) I am most proud of the fact that Blue Collar Hustle has been accepted into more than 30 film awards and has been the recipient of numerous awards, including bing named Best Web Series by the Oniros Film Awards and Best Representation Of Communities Of Color by the Minnesota Webfest. What sets myself and my company apart is that we are dedicated to telling stories that are unapologetically black in narrative.
Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
My favorite memory from childhood ism father teaching me the history of black people before America. This was something that we were not taught in schools as I was growing up so the fact that my father took the time to make sure that I had some sort of knowledge and pride in African history was very important to me
Contact Info:
- Email: alongehawes1@yahoo.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackonbothsidesseries/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Black-On-Both-Sides-Digital-Series-460735131344320/?modal=admin_todo_tour
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