A well-traveled man at the early age of 23, this filmmaker was born in West Palm Beach, Fla., then moved to Canton, N.Y. to attend the alma mater of Amsterdam News Editor-in-Chief Elinor Tatum, St. Lawrence University. After four cold years at St. Lawrence University, he headed far west to California after matriculation but now currently resides in the city of dreams, New York City.
A city of dreams could not be truer for this young director. After dropping out of graduate school in Los Angeles, Alcee Walker reapplied and went all the way through graduating this past May with a master’s degree in social documentary from the School of Visual Arts. Said Walker, “Three weeks after graduation, I was still hungry and wanted more, so I enrolled into another grad program, which I am now working on a degree in narrative film directing, which is what I truly want to do in life.”
Just a few months ago, he premiered his first documentary in New York City at the SVA Theatre while in school. The documentary is aptly called “Pain of Love.” When asked to elaborate on what the documentary is about, he came to life. He said, “‘Pain of Love’ is my baby. When I decided to produce and direct this film, my primary audience was high school and college students in underserved communities and all-American families, with a particular aim to reach disenfranchised, broken or abused families.”
The film is raw in itself. This is exactly what Walker intended. He expressed, “I want my film to engage young people in the conversation of the importance of family. ‘Pain of Love’ will encourage them to recognize the psychological influences of surrounding family life. Furthermore, my film aims to motivate future generations to create healthy and strong family foundations. The film, ‘Pain of Love,’ serves as a motivational platform, which speaks to the inner struggle often faced by these teenagers and young adults.”
This film was inspired by the deep emotional pain that he felt that, unfortunately, many of us also know too well. It’s a story that is swept under the rug and made taboo. Often people feel that their struggles aren’t something the world should know, and many families in America walk around with that monkey on their back and a constant grudge. Walker’s film allows the people of our community to know it is OK to let go.
The film deals with Walker meeting his father and attempting to reconcile past aggravations between his family members, to and gather them all at a table for a family dinner—something that has not happened ever for the Walker family. His struggle is his motivation.
Getting his family together is not the only goal for young Walker. He includes “the long-term goal of the film is to have it on a television network. ‘Pain of Love’ is a six-part 30-minute documentary series.” He has also created the “Pain of Love” college tour, where he is traveling to different universities screening his film. St. Lawrence University was the first to pick up Walker on his tour. Now 2015 has proven promising, with many schools already working to sign agreements to bring Walker on. Walker adds, “I have recently won the Directors Guild of America Award, which is freaking huge,” and he is traveling to California for another nomination ceremony.
Students have made Walker’s hopeful reactions come true. During his St. Lawrence University, screening a student posted on Snapchat a snippet of his film with a line that said, “We needed this.” Walker’s next step is his first narrative on three sisters with a total of 19 kids, as well as a documentary about a Bronx school that accepts students who have been left back and are over the age in middle school to allow the children to continue getting an education at the pace they need it.
Walker is not slowing down, instead he’s nearly working himself to death chasing his dream. He said that while working 15-hour sets concentrated on perfecting his product, he would forget to eat and has fainted multiple times—something he has recently gotten better at avoiding, he chuckles. “I want to be able to enjoy my accomplishments and not be dead.”
With enough on his plate, he still finds time to give back to the kids of his community. He volunteers as a football coach for children in middle school, teaching them the discipline he learned through the sport and giving them the opportunity that they probably wouldn’t have to play competitively in two different leagues.
Walker is a role model in more ways than one. He has showed through his films how to embody one’s struggle and create a story that others can relate to. His dream is the dream of many others. He said people can keep up with his film production on all social media, and he is welcoming anyone that will want to screen his film. The fruit of his labor stemmed from his personal pain of love.
