RACINE NATIVE TO SCREEN MOVIE FOR LOCAL AUDIENCE Debut Feature Film to Show at The Oriental Theatre in Milwaukee

Anwar Jamison (right), writer and director of Funeral Arrangements, is seen here with Mr. Deejae (left) in a scene from the movie.

Anwar Jamison, a 1994 graduate of Case High School, will be on hand for a special sneak preview of his film, Funeral Arrangements, at The Oriental Theatre in Milwaukee on Thursday, March 4^th at 7:00 PM. The film initially premiered to rave reviews at the Indie Memphis Film Festival in Memphis, TN this past November. The film picked up its first award when Funeral Arrangements received The Award of Merit at The Indiefest in La Jolla, CA in December.

Jamison, who received an M.A. in Film & Video Production from The University of Memphis, sees this as a great opportunity to share the movie with family, friends, and film lovers in Wisconsin, before its official release at the end of the year. “A lot of people at home have heard about the movie and I didn’t want everyone to have to wait until the official release to see it,” he explains. “I look forward to the opportunity for everyone to see it because even though the story takes place in Memphis, the main characters are from Racine and I tried to represent that in a very authentic way.”

Funeral Arrangements is a comedy/drama about Drew Turner, an aspiring music producer with a college degree, but only a dead end job and a dream to show for it. After being presented with an opportunity to attend an important music industry event, which just happens to coincide with a day that he cannot miss work, Drew lies to his boss to avoid work. As a result, he ends up at a complete stranger’s funeral where a case of mistaken identity leaves him trapped in an outrageous situation that brings him closer to both love and danger.

Jamison is an English professor and Video Specialist at Mid-South Community College in West Memphis, Arkansas. Along with his teaching obligations, he is currently developing other projects. Jamison will begin shooting his second movie in December and looks eagerly towards future projects in his hometown. “The Racine I grew up in was so vibrant and alive. I had a lot of experiences that made me the person I am, and I really want to put those stories on the screen, just like other directors have done for the places where they grew up.