For each day in the month of February, the Committee will be highlighting African-American members, both past and present, and their accomplishments. We look forward to showing the contributions and influences African-Americans have had on the industry.
Name: Gene Lewis Jr
What’s your job? Editorial Assistant
List the credits you’re most proud of. “Jingle Jangle,” “Bumblebee”
What are you working on right now? An independent short film
Who and what are your influences and/or mentors? Paul Rubell, ACE, Jeff Ford, ACE, William Goldenberg, ACE, Leslie Webb, Lillian Benson, ACE, Leander Sales, Saleem Aziz, and Wellington Harrison.
What books are you reading, shows are you watching and/or movies you’re excited about? I am presently reading “A Long Time Ago in A Cutting Room Far, Far Away…Paul Hirsch.” I’ve recently watched “The Mandalorian” season 2 and completed “Lupin.” I’m excited about “No Time to Die” and “Black Widow.”
What would be your superhero name? The Reciprocator
What are your Black History Month memories and any cultural or historical impacts on your life? Watching the Bud Billiken Day Parade while growing up in Chicago. Having Harold Washington be Chicago’s first Black Mayor, watching him setting the bar high, not just as a black person in Gov’t, but as a person that carried himself in a positive way. Malcolm X, not in an obvious way, but as a man that constantly evolved as he arrived at different truths.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given? “Get used to being told no, no matter how successful you are, you will always be told no, but be ready to standby what you believe. – Richard Zanuck.
If you could time travel, when would you go and why? If I could time travel, I’d like to go to Chicago Millennium Park, 2008, the night that President Obama won. I’d want to feel the electricity of that crowd.
What’s a little known fact about you? What are your hidden (or not so hidden) talents? I’ve been called a Cinefile and I’ve recently embraced the title. My love goes from silent to present. It’s been a while, but I also sketch and sometimes paint.
What would be your dream project to work on? My dream project for so many years was a story of the Red Tails, also to tell a cinematic tale of the Buffalo Soldier.
