Film Independent’s Fiscal Sponsorship program opens the door to nonprofit funding for independent filmmakers and media artists. Donate today and help bring The Seven Ages of Olajuwon to life.
 

Logline

After being arrested in an FBI sting and labeled a domestic terrorist amidst the Ferguson protests, a once-promising student, father, artist, and activist leader comes home to his life and family after 6 years of federal incarceration. With over a decade of intimate footage, this film bears witness as Olajuwon questions the tactics and label of “Black Identity Extremist” used to put him away and learns to reconcile his tumultuous past with his hopeful future.

Synopsis

Olajuwon Davis had always been a star: in plays, concerts, independent films, documentaries, and academia. An FBI sting is basically a stage play where all the players know their roles except the star, whose part is only revealed when the curtain rises and the handcuffs get slapped on, and the FBI would cast Olajuwon in the role that changed his life… Black Identity Domestic Terrorist.

Now, after 7 years in federal prison, Olajuwon is free to tell his side of the story, and, if his criminal record doesn’t prevent it, to return to the stage as an acclaimed actor, musician, and ally of his community. Supported by more than 100 hours and 12+ years of intimate footage, Olajuwon can finally reveal the truth behind the distortions of his life and explore the key performances that define who he was, is, and will be. Reflecting on the roles he’s always felt pressured to fulfill: the golden child, family patriarch, voice of his people – Olajuwon will lead us through his life on stage and camera while still facing the federal institutions that sought to bring him down.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

Bobby Herrera — Director/Producer
Bobby Herrera is a Mexican American filmmaker raised in Corpus Christi, Texas and currently based in St. Louis, Missouri. He shot, directed, and edited the 2011 feature length documentary, The Gray Seasons. He wrote and directed the 2017 no-budget feature narrative, Palacios, starring Olajuwon Davis and distributed by Freestyle Digital Media. Herrera is a 2020 Sundance Feature Film Fellow, grant recipient from the Will and Jada Smith Family Foundation, and SFFILM Westridge Grant winner with his latest screenplay, Pink Casa. He attended Baylor University and Washington University in St. Louis where he studied architecture, art, and literature. Herrera creates a wide range of video content for commercial, entertainment, and fine art use.

Aaron Bowden — Producer
Aaron Bowden is an award-winning documentary filmmaker raised in Philadelphia, based for nearly 10 years in Los Angeles and now residing in St. Louis, Missouri. Aaron has more than 20 years of experience as a nonfiction storyteller, starting as a journalist for The Concord Monitor and continuing through writing/producing/directing documentary features and series about hard-hitting subjects like the Iran Hostage Crisis, The Vietnam War, Al Qaeda, The Taliban and the hunt for Osama Bin Laden. Recently Aaron directed, wrote and shared executive producing credit with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Dream Hampton on Finding Justice, which won a Gold Telly Award and was nominated for an International Documentary Association award for its depiction of activists working to combat social injustice.

Damon Davis — Producer
Damon Davis is a post-disciplinary artist who resides in St. Louis, Missouri. Davis graduated from Saint Louis University in Communication Technology. Davis co-directed the acclaimed documentary, Whose Streets?, which premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. He also is a founder of the music and art imprint, Far Fetched. After events in Ferguson, Davis created his most identifiable work, All Hands on Deck, recently inducted into the Smithsonian African American History Museum. He helped found The Artists As Tutors program in 2014 and was named as one of The New Faces of Social Justice by Revolt Magazine. Davis is a recipient of an Emmy Award Mid America for Best Short Form Program with A Story To Tell. Filmmaker Magazine selected him for “25 New Faces of Independent Film 2016.” Davis is a Firelight Media Fellow, 2016 Sundance Music and Sound Design Lab Fellow, Root100 Honoree, and The Kennedy Center.

Make a donation to The Seven Ages of Olajuwon.

Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.