Atlanta-filmed “Till” shows the legacy of freedom through new eyes

When the producers of the film Till reached out to Chinonye Chukwu three years ago and asked if she was interested in making the movie, she was at first reluctant. “I didn’t know what approach they’d be open to,” she says, admitting that while most people know about Emmett Till, not as many know all of his mother Mamie’s accomplishments. “Then I really thought about it and (said) it would be a very great opportunity to re-situate the narrative within the context of Mamie’s emotional journey, and that got me excited because we don’t see that on the big screen.” 

Open in area theaters since October 11, Till stars Danielle Deadwyler, a staple of Atlanta theater over the last decade. Deadwyler has recently branched out into television and film as Mamie Till, mother of 14-year-old son Emmett (Jalyn Hall), who is lynched in 1955 after an accusation of inappropriate behavior with a White woman. After his death, Mamie decides to show the world Emmett’s mutilated body in an open casket as part of his funeral. Later, she is steadfast in seeking justice for his killers, Roy Bryant and J.W. Milam, who were acquitted by an all-White jury for Till’s kidnapping and murder — and later confessed to the murder in Look magazine. 

The film was shot in Atlanta and other parts of Georgia. Chukwu, who is the film’s director, screenwriter and executive producer, was in town recently for a press day to discuss the film. 

For the director, Till is an opportunity to finally tell Mamie’s story. “I think a lot of people know what happened to Emmett, but a lot of people don’t know about Mamie and her journey, her contributions and the life that happened after she discovered he was lynched,” she says. Before Chukwu came on, the producers had conducted decades of research and one — Keith Beauchamp — was a mentee of Mamie’s before she passed and helped get the case re-opened by the Justice Department. Beauchamp also made the 2005 documentary The Untold Story of Emmett Louis Till. “I walked into a situation where there is decades of research and transcripts and interviews and personal accounts and primary information, so I was able to learn all of that and absorb it, knowing that my narrative point of view was Mamie. I am a very focused storyteller with this film, and I knew that the information presented largely has to be through Mamie’s point of view. If she was not aware of certain things, then we would not be. We find out things when she finds out,” says Chukwu. 

One of the scarier aspects of Till is how topical it feels, more than 65 years after the brutal killing. Chukwu acknowledges that is one reason the film is so necessary today. “We can see ourselves and our present realities, and it was only very recently — 67 years after — that we even passed the anti-lynching bill. That is why it is critical now. In addition, there are states in this country that are actively erasing history from curriculums. It’s yet another reason that this is told.”

Her approach was to humanize Mamie and Emmett and everyone else in the story. Yet Till is also, as she points out, a love story between Mamie and her child and between Mamie and her immediate community. “I really wanted to communicate that bond and that love that existed between Mamie and Emmett at the beginning and at the end — and to leave the audience at that space, something that is full of hope and possibility and love and not leave on the note of the tragedy that happened.”

Mamie’s decision to show the world Emmett’s body and the subsequent work she did afterward helped mold the modern day civil rights movement. Her efforts motivated Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. “They specifically and explicitly referenced Mamie’s work as a freedom fighter, as one of the inspirations for the work they did. She helped build upon a legacy of freedom fighting that a lot of people after her have built upon themselves.”

The director knew that the scene where Mamie sees her son’s body for the first time was going to be a tricky one. “When it’s shown, it is important that . . .  it is shown sparingly but effectively. My decision to show his body is an extension of Mamie’s decision for the world to see what has happened to her son. That is such an important element to this story. I knew I wanted to honor Mamie’s wishes but to do so in a way that took care and was enough but not indulgent.” 

Deadwyler’s performance is near perfection, capturing Mamie’s strength and resolve, and she is being discussed as a Best Actress nominee for the Academy Awards. Chukwu, whose last film was the acclaimed Clemency with Alfre Woodard, calls the actress brilliant. “It was such a joy to work with her. We spent several months before shooting diving into every emotional beat and nuance in the script. She fully committed herself mind, body and spirit, diving into not only into the research but understanding Mamie’s emotional and psychological being, and she channeled that with every single take of the film. The way she can command the screen and communicate a story with her eyes — she is a star.” 

Hall also makes a strong impression as Emmett. Chukwu picked up immediately on how the actor wanted to get the role precise. “He has such natural charm and charisma and talent; the chemistry reading with Danielle was fantastic. He was hungry for this, to get it right, understanding the significance. We were protective of him and all the cast and crew by having an on-set therapist every day.”

As she was making the film, Chukwu became fascinated by Georgia’s versatility as a shooting location. “There are pockets that look vastly different from each other. What has amazed me is that there are places throughout the state that you can make look like other places. It is amazing, and in every state you cannot do that. We were able to find places that go from a cotton mill to downtown Chicago. Georgia had so much visually for us, and being able to shoot in the South was an added bonus.”

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Jim Farmer covers theater and film for ArtsATL. A graduate of the University of Georgia, he has written about the arts for 30+ years. Jim is the festival director of Out on Film, Atlanta’s LGBTQ film festival. He lives in Avondale Estates with his husband, Craig, and dog, Douglas.