Twenty Five
Lonnie Edwards
About the Filmmaker
With his first two films, “Parietal Guidance” and “A Ferguson Story”, the Chicago native quickly earned a reputation for documenting and dramatizing lives in oppressed and marginalized communities. His work has won numerous festival prizes, honors from the Gene Siskel Film Center, a spot on Film50s list for most influential people in film and chosen as Newcity magazine’s 2016 “Filmmaker of the Year”. His short music documentary Exodus: Sounds of the Great Migration screened at the 2017 Pan African International Film Festival in Cannes, where it won awards for “Best Experimental Short Film” and “Best New Director”. His most recent short film “Periphery” (2019) currently ranks amongst the top 100 short films internationally by LIFT-OFF Global. Upon going on a 2 year film hiatus to focus and learn other forms of art, Lonnie Edwards has come back to his first true passion...The art of film.
From the Filmmaker
"I want to continue to spread awareness and tell stories of social justice and other movements towards the betterment of humanity through numerous Art forms. Creating films that speak to the injustices prevalently happening in America."
Twenty Five
Director & Writer: Lonnie Edwards
Producers: Amir George & Sonya Jackson
"TwentyFive", tells the story of Eric Williams, a descendent of the Great Migration, who fell in love with Chicago house music and became a street peddler to support his passion. Through a combination of interviews, animation, and archival footage the film explores how Eric's love for house music led him on a journey to build a thriving business that has connected communities and cultures across Chicago.
This film is about a Chicago cultural institution that is the Silverroom and its creator, but it is also about House music which originated in Chicago.