In the opening scene of the Jeremy S. Levine and Landon Van Soest documentary film “For Ahkeem,” St. Louis teen Daje Shelton stands before Judge Jimmie Edwards in court, all out of second chances.
She’s been getting suspended since she was five years old, but a fight during her junior year of high school means that Shelton is no longer welcome at public school.
She has two choices: attend Edwards’ Innovative Concept Academy or be done with school altogether.
“I can’t get into college from no alternative school,” Shelton tells her mother.
She knows that she is a smart and well-rounded student, but her chances in life are tied to individuals looking beyond her behavioral choices.
The documentary film “For Ahkeem” gives viewers the opportunity to do so over the course of her junior and senior years at the school starting in 2013. The odds were stacked against Shelton since before she was born.
Shelton’s mother was expelled from school at the same age. The outcome was limited opportunities because of her lack of education and an impoverished life for her family. The last thing she wants is for her daughter to repeat that cycle.
“Judge always talked about not giving kids a second, third or fourth chance because by the time they come before him in his courtroom they are already on their twelfth chance,” said Bradley J. Rayford, who worked on the film as a field producer and soundperson. “He felt that he needed to give them a different chance – and to show the kids stern compassion so they can become productive adults who are not making excuses for themselves.”
After an acclaimed festival run that included the Berlin Film Festival, Tribeca Film Festival and the Toronto Film Festival, “For Ahkeem” will premiere in St. Louis with a special screening at Beyond Housing’s 24:1 Cinema at 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 12. A post-show Q&A will follow the screening on the 12th and the film will play at the theatre through October 19.
“People from St. Louis will see themselves in it,” Rayford said. “Whether you are the young person, the school administrator or teacher fighting for that young person, you will find some way to relate to it.
“We hear all the time that North St. Louis is such a violent place. When we say that, we dehumanize the people who live there. Hopefully when people see the film they are able to humanize the people who are often forgotten.”
“For Ahkeem” grew out of a PEOPLE Magazine profile of Judge Edwards, who was named a PEOPLE Hero for 2011.
Edwards and the PEOPLE Magazine author Jeff Truesdell, who lives in St. Louis, developed a relationship. Rayford said the idea for the film came from Truesdell’s desire to tell a broader story of the school and its impact on the region.
“The Innovative Concept Academy is an interesting story,” Rayford said. “You have this juvenile court judge with all of this power and the future of these young people in his hands based on the decisions he makes. He decided to use that power not only to uplift his community, but trying to prevent the generational problems that a lot of the young black inner-city kids face.”
Edwards was the inspiration for the film, but he only makes a pair of cameo appearances in “For Ahkeem.”
The school is a part of Shelton’s story and all the ups and downs she faces as she fights for her future.
“What we hope that people understand is that this is just a slice of her life – it’s not the whole story,” Rayford said. “Daje is an amazing young woman. She had so many opportunities to give up, but she made a personal decision to keep going.”
By capturing Shelton’s experience at the school – and the barriers she faces with her education based on her environment – the film illustrates the impact and importance of Innovative Concept Academy and the change agent the school can be for those who willing to take advantage of what it offers.
“Now you have dozens, possibly hundreds, of kids who received their diploma because a black man in power decided to act,” Rayford said. “Imagine if more people like him decided to take action in a similar way – how much better our city and country would be. There are plenty of people doing things, but the point is that there is never enough.”
“For Akeem” will premiere in St. Louis at 7 p.m. on Thursday, October 12 at Beyond Housing’s 24:1 Cinema, 6755 Page Ave, St. Louis, Mo. 63133. There will be a Q&A after the screening. The film will run at 24:1 Cinema from October 12-19.
