One theater in Springfield, Ill. decided not to show Stomp The Yard, based on the ignorant thought that it would attract too many African American youths [or "gangsters"]...but what they would have known had they watched the movie is that it's a coming of age tale set on the campus of an HBCU with minimal violence and profanity...

But ignorance is bliss and we can't change the world in one day...

Nonetheless, the lead in the movie, Columbus Short talked with the Associated Press about what he learned filming "Stomp the Yard."

AP: This is a dance film first and foremost. Lots of music and inspiring moves on-screen. Was that what made you want to play DJ Williams?

Short: Actually, no. At this point in Hollywood, there are about two dance films a year. People are used to seeing them. What set this apart was that there's a bigger message here.

AP: Which was?

Short: There's one hundred years behind the organization, the black fraternity, in the film. And it's taken that long to get people talking about it. It's bringing something that's been going on for so long to the light. I was more excited about doing that aspect of the project than doing the dance in it.

AP: In the beginning of the film, DJ didn't have plans to go to college. He was a competitive dancer in L.A. but he gets into trouble and ends up enrolling in classes in Atlanta. He's out of place on campus.

Short: DJ sets out to fulfill his promise to his mother to go to college. It's not easy for him. He's the kid who's not supposed to make it. We see the character go from tragedy to triumph.

AP: There's more going on besides music and dancing.

Short: I hope that some kids will see this and you know, we're in an MTV generation. Everything is about what's now and here, in the moment. No one wants to work for anything anymore. It's cool to dumb yourself down, to fit in by being ignorant and not be well-spoken. But this shows that you can get an education and still be part of a brotherhood or sisterhood that will be there long after your college years are over.

AP: The fraternity, the bond with his frat brothers, really seems to change DJ.

Short: Yes, at one point, DJ gets in trouble at college. He doesn't try to excuse his actions. He says, "I can't say much, but I can say that I'm different now."

AP: Did you know anything about black fraternities before you started the film?

Short: No, I was ignorant myself. But going to Atlanta and being on the campus really shed some light on things for me. I didn't even go to college, and doing this film I regretted that.

AP: At that time in your life, you were learning how to dance, right? The dancing you do in the film_ honestly, when I saw some of it I assumed it was somehow faked. It seems physically impossible to do some of the things you did.

Short: We used no strings, no wires. Everyone did their own dancing. There were injuries, but we put our all into it.

AP: And how many of your own dance moves are in the film?

Short: Dave Scott, the choreographer, wanted me to bring what I could do the table, so a lot of the sequences that you saw were improvised, especially the dancing I did by myself. I hope people enjoy the dancing and get into the story but I also hope they remember the character DJ. Mainly, I hope they hear the message. There's a genuine message in the film, which is not something that dance films are known for.


A Lil' Lagniappe: Columbus Short toured in the Broadway hit "Stomp" and went on to choreograph for pop acts including Britney Spears' In the Zone Tour, who he was rumored to have had an affair with...

Labels: Columbus Short