From Stage to Screen: Playwright & Filmmaker Aleshea Harris

About this episode

Aleshea Harris discusses her transition from playwright to filmmaker with her debut feature film IS GOD IS.

Playwright Aleshea Harris made her feature film directorial debut with IS GOD IS, adapted from her Obie Award-winning play of the same name. On the day her film opened in theaters, Aleshea sat down with host Paola Mardo to talk about her jump from playwriting to writing and directing a film with an all-star cast including Kara Young, Mallori Johnson, Vivica A. Fox, Sterling K. Brown, Janelle Monáe, and Erika Alexander. She also talks about how she worked with producers Tessa Thompson and Janicza Bravo to bring her play to the big screen, how the story subverts genre expectations, and how her roots in spoken word poetry and theater sharpened her writing style.

People in this episode

Host: Paola Mardo

Guest: Aleshea Harris

Topics covered

• playwriting
• filmmaking
• adaptation
• genre subversion
• spoken word poetry
• theater

Keywords

• Aleshea Harris
• IS GOD IS
• filmmaking
• playwriting
• Tessa Thompson
• Janicza Bravo
• genre expectations
• spoken word poetry

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: IS GOD IS

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