News

The award-winning documentary short “clusterluck” has been hailed for its unique content and superb technical delivery, and now Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Candace N. Hall’s, EdD, film is coming to a St. Louis big screen. 

Hall’s film was selected to be part of the 23^rd Annual St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase, presented by Cinema St. Louis. Tickets are now on sale for the showing of “clusterluck” at 4 p.m. Sunday, July 23 at the Hi-Point Theatre in St. Louis. 

“As a proud St. Louis native, it is exciting to have the opportunity to share my work at home,” said Hall, “clusterluck” creator and executive producer and assistant professor in the School of Education, Health and Human Behavior’s (SEHHB) Department of Educational Leadership. 

The documentary short captures the intentionality of recruiting Black faculty to SIUE and explores the creation of an intentional community to support Black faculty toward thriving and experiencing joy at the institution. Hall was hired at SIUE in a cluster in 2020. 

Starring in the 24-minute film are Hall, Hughes, SEHHB’s Educational Leadership faculty members J.T. Snipes, PhD, and Cherese Fine, PhD, assistant professors; Derek Houston, PhD, associate professor; and Angel Jones, PhD, visiting assistant professor; and Dominic Dorsey, director of Accessible Campus Community and Equitable Student Support (ACCESS) and adjunct faculty in Higher Education and Student Affairs. The film’s director is Cami Thomas, CEO of My Friends and I (MFAI) in St. Louis. 

“This is a competitive event and all films entered are not ultimately invited to participate,” said Chris Clark, artistic director of Cinema St. Louis and producer of the St. Louis Filmmakers Showcase. “We look for freshness, confidence in storytelling and consistent quality on all technical aspects of the filmmaking process.” 

“It was an interesting and unique topic from a somewhat underrepresented demographic – Black academicians,” noted Clark about “clusterluck.” “Many of the short documentaries we received and were on bleaker topics such as crime, addiction, etc. While those are films that are important and always part of the mix, it was refreshing to have something with a much more positive outlook.” 

“Being in the showcase helps me to share my research beyond the academy and makes it accessible to a wider audience,” said Hall, also co-program director for SIUE’s Higher Education and Student Affairs (HESA). “I hope people are able to watch the film and understand the importance of not just representation, but also of belonging. I hope people in other sectors can think beyond merely recruiting a diverse workforce and consider how those recruits can have positive experiences in their workplaces. I hope this project helps other academics to think about creative ways we can reach audiences beyond the academy to truly affect change in the world.” 

“I love meeting new filmmakers,” said Clark, “and being able to provide them with the opportunity to share their voices and perspectives on the world.” 

Hall and Thomas also won a prestigious Award of Recognition from the IndieFEST Film Awards for the documentary short. 

For more information or to book a viewing of the film, contact Hall at @hallofacademia on Twitter candacenhall.com. 

Photo courtesy of My Friends and I (MFAI) in St. Louis:
Candace Hall, EdD, “clusterluck” creator and executive producer and assistant professor in the SEHHB’s Department of Educational Leadership.