Dwyane Wade Received Oscar Nomination For Short Film ‘The Barber of Little Rock’
Basketball Hall of Famer Dwyane Wade is credited as an executive producer on the short film, “The Barber of Little Rock,” which was recently nominated for an Oscar. The short documentary narrates the tale of Arlo Washington, a barber hailing from Little Rock, Arkansas. Washington is the founder of The People Trust, a nonprofit community bank dedicated to assisting underserved residents in his locality in attaining financial stability.
The short documentary is available for free viewing on The New Yorker’s YouTube channel. It was directed by John Hoffman and Christine Turner. Other nominees in the category comprised “Island in Between” and “The Last Repair Shop.”
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The Miami Heat legend emphasized the significance of Arlo Washington’s narrative. Additionally, he expressed the honor he felt in being able to share Washington’s story, as reported by Matthew Carey of Deadline.
“We had one barbershop, we had a library, and we didn’t have much,” Wade said. “And so it was very similar. And to be able to listen to Arlo’s story and to understand that you need someone in the community that people trust — no pun on People Trust — but really it’s about who people trust and he’s living it.
“He’s there with them. He’s boots on the ground,” Wade added. “He’s not talking from the penthouse; he’s in the community. I’m the lucky one here in that I was able to be a part of this and hopefully highlight it in even a bigger way than it already was going to be.”
The Barber of Little Rock made its debut at the Indy Shorts International Film Festival in Indiana and was featured at DOC NYC and the Woodstock Film Festival in New York. Co-director Hoffman notes that the film has been enlightening for numerous viewers.
“At each festival screening, the same thing happened. It’s really been quite remarkable that a white, older — probably about my age or even a little bit older — gentleman, has stood up and said, ‘I, until this moment, have really not understood what people are talking about when they talk about this racial wealth gap. And this film has explained it to me for the first time. I understand it now.”
Hoffman added, “You see people in the film talking about they have nothing to pass on to their children… If we can change, rearrange the cells in people’s brains through this emotional medium, which film is — documentaries really can affect people, change hearts and minds with the storytelling and with people like Arlo – then, for the white community, it is hopefully opening up conversations that need to happen in this country.”
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