On May 17, 2017, Houston, Texas became one of the unique cities to experience a cinematic preview of the upcoming Tupac biopic, ALL EYEZ ON ME. In honor of the film’s release that is scheduled on June 16, which is also the actual birth date of Tupac Shakur, a 17 city tour was scheduled to create a buzz for a movie that is long overdue.
Excited participants lined up next door to Houston’s Stereo Live and waited to enter an unassuming cine-transformer trailer. From the outside, this trailer is beautifully decorated with images and wording to promote the film. However, once you walk inside of the mobile cinema your mind is blown by the exquisite engineering and construction of an actual movie theater. We learned that this is the first time an event of this magnitude came to fruition for an urban production.
After taking our seats and discussing the importance of this movie and some quick house rules, the moment we all had been waiting for arrived and it did not disappoint our expectations. The audience witnessed the testament of cast members, producers, and one special guest surprised us at the end of the cinematic preview. The film director for ALL EYEZ ON ME is the legendary Benny Douglas, also known as “Benny Boom” and he was present to share his gratitude for everyone coming out and showing love for this film.
As a fan of Benny Boom’s work through the years, it was enlightening to learn that he considers Houston, Texas home. And because of his love for Houston, he took a special flight to be at this event and spend time with the fans. It was indeed an honor to ask him a few questions about his directorial experience. Read the brief interview below and enjoy.
ALL EYEZ ON ME DIRECTOR BENNY BOOM INTERVIEW
| Angela Cherise: Welcome home, back to Houston. How did you first hear about this film project? | ||||
| Benny Boom: I heard about it from the producers about 6 years ago. They were starting talks with different directors and stuff. Actually F. Gary Gray was the first director that was on the project. And then there were some others who have come and gone off, and throughout the time I was talking to them about a whole other film, a different film altogether. They exhausted some of their other directors and they said “Look man, we really want you to do this.” So it came together like that. | ||||
| Angela Cherise: So it was perfect timing. Do you mind sharing some of the obstacles you had to go through to get here? | ||||
| Benny Boom: You know some of the obstacles were just … You know one of the main obstacles was shooting in Atlanta and having to turn Atlanta into New York and Baltimore and Oakland and all these other places. In terms of filming, that was one of the bigger challenges. To be able to capture all these cities, everybody knows what they look like in one place, in Atlanta. | ||||
| Angela Cherise: What is one thing you want people to walk away with after watching this film, especially for those who don’t know Tupac’s legacy and the impact he’s left upon us all? | ||||
| Benny Boom: The one thing I want people to walk away with is understanding who Tupac was as a man, aside from the music. Aside from the tabloids and the headlines. Who the person was. And I want them to understand the story as well, because we’ve got a lot of troubled youth out here, and Tupac’s story is a cautionary tale. You know people wanna run out here and be on some Tupac ish, but that’ll get you killed, you know what I mean? So we want people to be able to see the story and recognize what’s happening today in the story. |
Fun Facts:
Benny Boom is a member of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
Benny received a 2017 Video Director of the Year BET AWARDS nomination for his work on the video “Crzy” by Kehlani.
About the Film:
ALL EYEZ ON ME tells the true and untold story of a prolific rapper, actor, poet and activist Tupac Shakur. The film follows Shakur from his early days on the East Coast to his evolution into being one of the world’s most recognized and influential voices before his untimely death at the age of 25. Against all odds, Shakur’s raw talent, powerful lyrics, and revolutionary mindset propelled him into becoming a cultural icon whose legacy continues to grow long after his passing. ALL EYEZ ON ME stars Demetrius Shipp, Jr. as Tupac Shakur alongside Kat Graham, Lauren Cohan, Hill Harper, Jamal Woolard and Danai Gurira.
Remaining Tour Dates:
5/18
Dallas, TX
5/20 – 5/22
Atlanta, GA
5/24
Charlotte, NC
5/26
Baltimore, MD
5/27 – 5/28
Washington, DC
5/30
Chicago, IL
6/1
Detroit, MI
6/3
Philadelphia, PA
6/5
Boston, MA
6/6 – 6/11
New York, NY
6/14
Orlando, FL
6/15 – 6/17
Miami, FL
FOLLOW THE CONVERSATION ONLINE:
WEBSITE www.AllEyez.movie
FACEBOOK /AllEyezMovie
TWITTER @AllEyezMovie
INSTAGRAM @AllEyezMovie
OFFICIAL HASHTAG #AllEyezOnMe
