Shandrea Funnye hails from Indianapolis, Indiana and a all around Ms. jack of all trade; a playwright, screenwriter, actress and director all role into one. She’s made quite a name for herself around Indianapolis for her hilarious stage plays. She wrote and directed her first feature film in 2020 titled, Home for the Holidays. She went onto create and Direct a web series called, Almost 30 in 2022.
Tell us about your experience at the Hip Hop Film Festival. I, Partyallwknd, Writer of SAVAGE went in place of our Director Shandrea Funnye and I can tell you our experience was outstanding. New York energy was all throughout the theater and even outside. I loved the DJ, the networking involved, the other filmmakers and the support from the HHFF staff. The respect given to us filmmakers was top tier. I was even able to come on stage and address the crowd. Amazing!
Why are “stories from the culture” worthy of a platform? It allows us to be us without feeling like uncomfortable and or overlooked. Stories from our culture really keeps the general pop culture alive. Our stories have always been overshadowed and/or worst stolen and revamped to fit more popular culture. What Hip Hop Film Fest is doing the very definition of For us, By us.
Why do you think the Harlem Film House and Hip Hop Film Festival are important? What Harlem Film House and Hip Hop Film Festival is doing is changing the narrative on what being a black creative looks like. No longer are we shackled by just being a rapper (although I love hip hop) or an athlete. We too have amazing stories to share with the world. We can create, produce, film, write and even direct our own blockbusters. Written and performed by people who get us and our slang, and how we dress, etc.
What projects are you working on now? Our director Shandrea is working on her hit web series, Almost 30. Me, Partyallwknd, is developing our next big project. A mini series called Trill Summer. A raunchy comedy about a ladies man who falls for the wrong lady, a deadly one. Super excited to begin work on that and I look to submit it to Hip Hop Film Fest in the very near future.