The cast of UP’s new original movie, In the Meantime
Written by | Ray Cornelius
UP formerly GMC held the Atlanta red carpet premiere of its newest original movie, In The Meantime on Wednesday night in the Rich Auditorium of the Woodruff Art Center.
The light-hearted romantic comedy features an all-star cast including Kali Hawk, Darren Dewitt Henson, Terri J. Vaughn, Tamela and David Mann, Rodney Perry, Elizabeth Omilami, Thomas Mikal Ford, Demetria McKinney and Grammy-nominated singer, Musiq SoulChild in his film debut.
In the Meantime follows Jazz (Kali Hawk), a confident and educated woman who thought her path in life was all laid out in front of her until her world is turned upside down. She loses her job and her artist fiancé Blaq (Musiq Soulchild) wants to take a break from their relationship before getting married.
Jazz ends up moving in with her big sister Nina (Terri J.Vaughn) and her husband Rev. Clay (Thomas Mikal Ford) and their daughter Assata (Imani Cain). During this time, Jazz is recruited to teach at an adult literacy program at a local community center run by Sister Faye (Elizabeth Omilami) and is paired with a hot shot attorney Kwame Davis (Darren Dewitt Henson). As Jazz and Kwame guide each student toward individual success, they both find themselves personally inspired and drawn into an unlikely friendship that surprisingly blossoms.
The movie is based on Nzinga Kadalie Kemp’s award-winning screenplay from the 2012 UP Faith and Family Screenplay Competition presented at the ABFF. The film is also directed by Roger M. Bobb (pictured above) of BobbCat Films. He also directed last year’s UP original movie, Raising Izzie which received two NAACP nominations.
Bobb, who has also worked with Tyler Perry and Rickey Smiley, talked very highly of his partnership with the UP TV. “Uplifting Entertainment, formerly GMC is doing great work in the community. It’s small films like this that basically show another side of the African-American community. I feel like there are a lot of negative stereotypes coming out of Atlanta and the only way to counteract that is to present positive images of African-Americans and that’s what UP does and that’s why I work with them.”
In the Meantime’s soundtrack also features an original song of the same name performed by Billboard Music Award winner and Grammy nominated KEM as well as “Here I Am” from Tamela Mann and special duet between Musiq SoulChild and Demetria McKinney entitled, “Still Believe In Love.”
Check out a few photos below from the red carpet premiere:
Kali Hawk and Darren Dewitt Henson
Terri J. Vaughn with Imani Cain/Demetria McKinney with Musiq SoulChild
David and Tamela Mann with Roger M. Bobb and HGTV’s Egypt Sherrod
Football Wives’ Shanita Foster and The Kandi Factory’s Victor Jackson
Rodney Perry cuttin up in the audience
Thomas Mikal Ford and Elizabeth Omilami
Demetria McKinney, Thomas Mikal Ford and Kali Hawk
RHOA’s Peter Thomas and 702 singer Meelah Williams
David and Tamela Mann during the Q&A
Kali Hawk, Musiq SoulChild and Darren Dewitt Henson during Q & A
In the Meantime airs on Saturday August 17 and Sunday, August 18 at 7, 9 and 11 P.M. EDT Exclusively on UP.
Photo Credit: Megan Alodie for RayCornelius.com
