February 13, 2012

For Immediate Release

Documentary filmmaker in residence at Hastings College for Black History Month

Note:  Lathon will be available for interviews throughout Feb. 20-24.  For additional information or to schedule an interview, please contact Alicia O’Donnell at aodonnell@hastings.edu or (402) 705-7050.

(Hastings, Neb.) – Artist, designer and documentary filmmaker J Bird “Jay” Lathon will be in residence at Hastings College as part of Black History Month festivities. From Monday, Feb. 20-24, Lathon will assist with various history, art, sociology and communications courses at HC as well as classes at Hastings Senior High School. Then, on Thursday, Feb. 23 at 7:30 p.m. in French Memorial Chapel, Lathon will speak about his films, which include “Numbers from a Montgomery Jail,” “The Ride” and “Black Moses and the Golden Idol.” This lecture will be free and open to the public.  

Biography
Artist, designer and filmmaker J Bird “Jay” Lathon was born in Clarksville, Tennessee, close to Fort Campbell, Ken., home of the 101st Airborne. He is the fourth son of two teachers with over fifty years of experience in education. His passion for art, history, culture and music evolved in a household where knowledge was held in high regard.

He studied Architecture at Hampton University and Art History at Lane College before
working for The New York Public Library in the Public Education Program’s lecture and
concert series. He worked as a freelance, designer, director and content producer for
companies such as The Abelson Company, Threshold Media Ventures and HBO’s “Blaze Battle”. During this time he also reconnected with his love of music by working as a DJ in some of Manhattan and Brooklyn’s best lounges.

In 2000, he wrote, produced, directed and edited his first films “The Process and Ms Right Now.” Both received a Special Acknowledgement at the 2002 Black International Cinema Festival in Berlin and screened out of competition at the Cannes Film Festival with other Brooklyn filmmakers sponsored by Gazm.org.

In 2003 he relocated to to Tennessee to make films and create art centered on Southern Culture and its influence on music and style domestically and internationally.

His short, “Numbers From A Montgomery Jail,” used original poetry, historical photographs, arrest records and sound design to tell its story about the Montgomery Bus Boycott. It premiered at the 2007 Nashville Film Festival and screened at the 2007 International Black Film Festival of Nashville.

His most current projects as a director are the documentaries “The Ride,” “Black Moses and the Golden Idol.” “The Ride” is a computer animated short film dramatizing the oral history of a woman’s first experience with the aftermath of lynchings in Vicksburg, Miss., in the 1930s. “Black Moses and the Golden Idol” celebrates, articulates and illustrates the recognition, influence and artistry behind Isaac Hayes’ Academy Award® winning Best Song “Theme From Shaft.”

His interest and work in cinema has honed his design sensibility even more due to it having to be translatable across several media platforms. As a designer he has created title designs, typography and logos for production companies and non-profit organizations such as District 7 Filmworks, Meta4 Houston, Shillingford Productions and the Birds of Mothership book entitled “Embrace the Suck: 366 Days of Strength, Courage, Inspiration, Wisdom and Hope” compiled by Gabriel Tolliver, author of “Bling: The Hip-Hop Jewelry Book.”

Hastings College, founded in 1882, is a private, four-year liberal arts institution affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). A total of 64 majors in 32 areas of study and 12 pre-professional programs are offered to more than 1,190 students. Hastings College was named among “America’s Best National Liberal Arts Colleges” by U.S. News & World Report, a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review, and a “Best Buy in College Education” by Barron’s. Visit www.hastings.edu for more information.