The tag line for "Equinox," a new indie film making rounds across the film festival circuit is "Boys are born but men are made."
As we witness the ongoing obstacles facing Black men in America, that declarative statement continues to ring true for men of African descent. The film centers on 18 year-old Malachi, a native of Oakland, CA who joins a "rites of passage" program to learn the true definition of manhood. What he learns is put to the test when his girlfriend resists his growth, his mother abuses his father, his sister's provacative lifestyle endangers her safety, and he's asked to join a revolution against the local radio station.
The film Equinox premiered in June 2008 at the San Francisco Black Film Festival and has received numerous awards since touring at other festivals in the U.S. and abroad. The director, Baayan Bakari, developed his love for theater at John F. Kennedy High school in Richmond, Ca. He studied sociology at San Jose State University and then went on to study drama at University of California at Berkeley. His love of writing came into focus after winning the prestigious Echoing Green Fellowship in 1996. Also, a prolific writer Bakari has written ten screenplays, directed and edited feature length films and shorts, directed music videos for local artists, and continues to be driven writer/filmmaker.
