A.J. Ali's Lounge Discussions

I know the money's important, but it's not the only thing. I've recently directed and produced a film (along with my co-producer and DP Errol Webber, a dedicated and brilliant cinematographer, I might add) that is transforming policing in America one heart at a time. I'm looking for an agent who can see the potential profit both financial and societal. We have been licensing the film directly to police departments, churches, libraries, schools, nonprofits and other organizations. Using the licensing model I created, we've already brought in 10x the amount of money a distributor offered us at the AFM in 2016, and (in my best Al Pacino voice) we're just getting warmed up! One couple recently sponsored 20 licenses to get the film into L.A. area high schools! We recently held one of those screenings at a school in Watts and a 15-year-old boy came up to us and said he has hated police his entire life because of what he's seen them do. And then he said our film, and the chance to speak with some peace officers who really care has caused him to change his mind about the police. He said "I want to be part of the solution now." I need a "Jerry Maguire" who sees the potential in that story. In 2016, in Dallas, a shooter took the lives of several police officers and wounded others during a peaceful rally. In October 2018, the Dallas County Community College District is bringing our film in to kickoff screenings at all 10 of their campuses for much-needed community discussions designed to heal. Again, I need a Jerry Maguire who sees the value in that. I once had someone tell me that a film can't change anything in society. I respect that person as a friend, but he couldn't be more wrong. Jerry Maguire, if there's one out there, I need you to help me get this film into 10,000 schools, 10,000 churches and 1 million homes. Literally everywhere we've played it, in more than 20 states, it has made a tremendous difference. When we get this film into 10,000 schools, 10,000 churches and 1 million homes, it will transform policing in America as we know it, from militaristic enforcers to peace officers in service to the community. Take a look at what happened when 3 Super Bowl champions hosted a screening of our film in Philadelphia and the NFL cameras were there...

Hey everyone! It has been awhile since I've been here. I'm back and hope to connect with anyone interested in social justice (I just completed WALKING WHILE BLACK: L.O.V.E. Is The Answer in February with Errol Webber as my producer partner), wellness or horses. Just not all at the same time. Well, maybe. We've got a few narrative features, a game show for wellness, and a doc in development. FUN!

Yup. I did. On June 16th, I flew to Florida with a one-way ticket and $500. 101 days later I was on a beach in Hawaii after traveling through all 50 states promoting wellness, challenging and helping people to change one thing about their lifestyle for better health -- and playing at least one round of golf in every state. I love golf, wellness, red wine and my wife -- just not in that order. Ok, wife, wellness, golf and red wine. Unless it's nighttime, then it's wife, red wine, wellness and golf. Oh, and I love comedy too. I'm busy launching Wellness 101 right now but I'm open to collaborating on anything that includes the above. Well, except for my wife. You can't collaborate on that one.

Hi! I love inspirational stuff, helping people -- and golf. I write books, screenplays and music. I produced a Hollywood FAME award winning compilation CD featuring a song I wrote for my wife to help her through chemo. A followup country CD is coming in 2014. I'm writing a screenplay now about a pro golfer and a little girl with cancer. Let's tee it up and make a difference together! My last TV show was Good Fellas of Baltimore, which we made for pennies and make it look great. It helped raise a quarter-million in cash products and support for dozens of charities and families in Baltimore, but we had to stop after only 2 episodes because we ran out of money and didn't get picked up -- one network told us we weren't fighting each other enough to get picked up, but this isn't Jersey Shore and I won't sell my soul. Help me revive a great concept that made a tremendous difference. Check out the trailer at: http://youtu.be/yjwl5fo9O4I

I'm making a documentary that will blow the lid off of racial profiling and the toll it exacts on all of society. We hear about the practice when someone gets killed, like Trayvon Martin. Fact is, it happens every day, everywhere in America. I need people to help find funding and other support for this important project. This is a great opportunity for anyone whose heart has been telling them to do something meaningful for a change. Sure, there's money in finding the next Bunny Hoo Hoo, but helping to get this made will make you feel a heck of a lot better while you're driving your Bentley with the top down on Ocean Avenue in Santa Monica. WHY YOU SHOULD HELP MAKE THIS FILM... The civil rights movement was started by Whites, Blacks, Jews and others. People of all races came together for the common good. Many great things have come out of the civil rights movement -- things that have benefited everyone -- including you. But the work of the civil rights movement is not yet finished. Gay rights, bullying, age discrimination and racial profiling are some of the hot button issues that are all remnants of the civil rights movement that have yet to be fully dealt with. You should help make this film because of a moral obligation to use your contacts and expertise in your field for social good. Keep doing what you're doing to make money, and lots of it, but let's also join together to use the power of media for social change. MY MOTIVATION I've been stopped for "Driving While Black" 5x and once last year for walking down a street and a police officer stops me and says (among other thing) "We're stopping everyone who looks like they are not from this neighborhood." I was detained for more than an hour by him and two other officers who joined him. That incident was in June 2012. I'm a 50-year-old Air Force veteran, never been involved with gangs or crime, I'm easy-going and non-threatening. I don't even speed! But yet, like millions of other Black men in America, I'm harassed by police regularly because of the color of my skin. In fact, 8 out of 10 adult Black men experience racial profiling stops by police. If you don't believe that stat, ask 10 random Black men if they've been stopped by police, not told why, and then let go with no official report or record of the stop. After exhausting legal remedies (there are none), and after hundreds of other people shared similar stories with me after reading the article I wrote, I decided to make a documentary about the topic and how it impacts all of society. There's lost productivity, it creates an unsafe situation for innocent victims and police officers, there's the financial toll (I'm out several hundred dollars from legal fees for one recent incident where I received a bogus ticket and the case was thrown out but I wasn't reimbursed my money), emotional toll and more. There are people in jail right now on false charges because of racial profiling. People have been killed or brutally beaten as a result of this practice. That is simply unacceptable. INJUSTICE FOR ONE IS INJUSTICE FOR ALL At the heart of this documentary is this: Do we allow a minority of bad cops working within a broken system to ignore the constitution and continue this practice? And at what price? If we do, at some point other groups will find themselves targets of similar discriminatory practices by police. Everyone is at risk for having their constitutional rights stripped away at the discretion of a bad cop with a gun. We have a very strong plan for grass roots and social media marketing, we have some great people on our team and we have a topic that is timely and heavily socially engaging. Do you want to help save lives, help protect the constitution and help to protect the basic rights we all enjoy, like the ability for any of us to take a walk without having to show papers and prove that we are not criminals? Join me in making a film that you will feel good about and that will benefit generations of people you love and care about. At the end of the day, this film will demonstrate that we are all... Walking While Black. See more at www.gofundme.com/walkingwhileblack or www.walkingwhileblackthemovie.com.