A New Film About African American Fraternities and Sororities Goes Beyond Just Stepping

    DETROIT, MI, October 14, 2014 /24-7PressRelease/ -- On Oct. 3, Jarrad Henderson, an award-winning photographer, videographer and editor, launched a Kickstarter campaign for "Beyond This Place," a short documentary film that examines the rich culture and contemporary challenges of America's black Greek Fraternities and Sororities.

"I created Beyond This Place to explore not only the beauty of our brotherhoods and sisterhoods, but also to explore their possibilities," said Henderson, a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc.. "I love the history of Black Greek Lettered Organizations (BGLOs) and their members, but I've often wondered how does that narrative continue today? There's so much criticism of these organizations and it seems like very few films have explored the idea of finding solutions to the challenges BGLOs face."

Born during the Jim Crow era of American history, black Fraternities and Sororities have helped to shape the social, political and cultural consciousness of post-emancipated America. Through personal stories, academic analysis, photographs and archival footage, Beyond This Place seeks to examine the history of BGLOs while at the same time posing a complex question: "What is the role of Black Greek Letter Organizations in the 21st Century?"

Passionate about the people and the important role BGLOs have had on American and black culture, Henderson decided to turn to the Kickstarter crowd funding platform to help finance the first portion of Beyond This Place and give supporters of the project access to exclusive rewards. The money raised will be used to rent audio/visual equipment, purchase archival images and video footage and to cover select production expenses. In exchange for supporting the project, backers can choose rewards including digital downloads of the film, screensaver artwork, onscreen credit, t-shirts and more.

"Beyond This Place is a story about infusing ingenuity into old traditions to meet new challenges," Henderson said. "While some may think that BGLOs are no longer relevant, I think we are needed more than ever. The individuals within our organizations may not be as well known and celebrated as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., but we are still producing leaders who provide that same level of achievement and dedication to solving the challenges of the black community."

The Beyond This Place Kickstarter project will be live until Nov. 2, during which time backers can become apart of the film project process and gain access to limited-edition rewards. For more information, check out the Kickstarter at http://kck.st/ZzIFSY.

Beyond This Place is an independent documentary film project that examines the rich culture of Black Greek Letter Organizations while at the same time posing a complex question: "What is the role of Black Greek Letter Organizations in the 21st Century?" Through personal stories, academic analysis, photographs, and archival footage, Beyond This Place aims to document, examine, and help facilitate discussions within the Black Greek and larger community with the goal of examining our culture with a critical lens, while also inspiring imaginative solutions to our modern day challenges. The nine historically Black Greek Lettered Organizations (BGLOs) include Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc., Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc., Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc., Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc. and Iota Phi Theta Fraternity, Inc.

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