From Devale Ellis and Tristan “Mack” Wilds to the Wire’s Andre Royo and NBA legend Allan Houston, the second annual showcase of Surrounded by Stories celebrated Black voices, bold filmmaking, and stories told on their own terms.
Co-founded by actor, singer and filmmaker Tristan “Mack” Wilds and filmmaker Greg Cally, Surrounded By Stories brings filmmakers, actors, film lovers and industry creatives together for screenings, networking, panels and conversations designed to support the next generation of storytellers.
Radio and TV personality Jazmyn Summers was on the scene for Radio One, capturing the cinematic magic.
Among the evening’s biggest draws was actor and filmmaker Devale Ellis, who stars in Old Gray Mare, directed by Courtney Glaudé. But the conversation with Ellis quickly moved beyond his latest acting role into something much more personal: Black love, fatherhood, marriage, family and the lessons he has carried from the generations before him.
Devale Ellis on Black Love, Family and Finding His Soulmate
Ellis and his wife, Kadeen Ellis, have built a public presence around their marriage and family that challenges some of the stereotypes surrounding Black relationships and fatherhood.
For Ellis, that mission begins at home.
“What really inspired that is my family,” he explained. “I come from a lineage of really good men.”
He recalled growing up surrounded by fathers, grandfathers and uncles who provided their families with something he now considers invaluable: “Their biggest message to me was to protect the queen.”
His grandmother was always cared for, he said, as was his mother. Ellis wanted to carry that same philosophy into his own marriage and family while pushing back against a narrative he believes too often ignores Black fathers who are present, loving and deeply involved.
“They make it seem like Black fathers don’t exist,” he said. “The narrative is that we’re not here, but that’s the farthest thing from the truth.”
Ellis sees his own family life as a way of showing another reality.
“I just want to walk in my truth and show people that I’m not the anomaly,” he said. “Black fatherhood is everywhere around us.”
And that same philosophy extends to his marriage.
Asked how he and Kadeen keep their relationship fresh after so many years together, Ellis didn’t offer a complicated formula.
“Being honest with each other, constantly dating each other, giving each other grace to change,” he said.“I think I was just lucky to find my soulmate. I can’t really give you rules. I just know that I love her more than anything. So I’m willing to do whatever it takes to keep that love alive. She’s willing to do the same, so it’s both of us. “
That’s my baby yo, since we were 18,” he shared. “That’s 26 years.”
That kind of longevity is impressive enough. But Ellis also has a story about romance that would be difficult to top.
The best date he ever planned for his wife wasn’t technically a date at all. It happened during the COVID-19 quarantine in 2020, when the couple was supposed to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary with a vow renewal.
The pandemic changed those plans.
So Ellis improvised.
Knowing that Kadeen’s favorite artist is Jamie Foxx, and that he knew Foxx’s manager, Ellis made a call.
“I called Jamie,” he recalled. “I said, ‘Jamie, we can’t get out the house. Can you drive by and do a song? You can just sing for my wife.’”
Foxx had an even better idea.
“He did a whole video singing her favorite song, ‘Heaven,’ for my wife and our anniversary,” Ellis said. “I don’t think I could ever top that.”
Asked about his bad habits, Ellis offered an answer with a laugh.
“Some people think it’s a bad habit, “I’m big on the greenery,” he admitted. “It’s like smoking a vegetable. That’s what I tell myself. All right, don’t judge me.”
And then there is his pet peeve.
Ellis said he has no problem with fans approaching him. What bothers him is being secretly recorded without being acknowledged.
“I’m not that guy. I love people. I’ll take a video. I’ll call your best friend, but please no recording me when I’m not watching. Just ask”
Ellis is also turning the lessons he learned about manhood and parenting from his family into a book “Raising Kings”
It is a natural extension of what Ellis was bringing to Surrounded By Stories: using his own experience to challenge narratives, create conversations and show audiences a fuller picture of Black family life.
Tristan “Mack” Wilds Wants More Voices at the Table
Wilds isn’t just one of the architects of the showcase. He was also part of one of its featured films, The Last Worker, alongside Naturi Naughton.
The film, written and directed by Naughton, asks an increasingly urgent question: What happens when artificial intelligence begins running everything?
“What happens in the world once we let AI start running everything?” Wilds asked. “What happens to us as people?”
The film brings a thriller edge to the showcase, but Naughton’s larger creative vision reaches into questions about AI, sexual assault and the impact of technology on humanity.
For Wilds, however, the larger story of the evening remains the opportunity itself.
“Man, the highlight, giving platforms to up and coming creatives,” he gushed. “I do what I do just so that not only could I create more opportunities for myself, for my family, for my friends, but for people who don’t necessarily always have a voice.”
That philosophy is essentially the heartbeat of Surrounded By Stories.
Wilds and Cally know firsthand what it means to navigate a film festival circuit where filmmakers can hear “no” repeatedly before finally getting that one yes.
“We wanted to create an opportunity for filmmakers to actually showcase their work without the fear of competition or the price of admission that usually comes with jumping into these film festivals,” Wilds explained. “We were trying to create a space that we wish was around when we were starting to make movies.”
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That mission goes beyond simply providing a screening room.
“Your voice gets muted, your pockets lessened,” Wilds said of the traditional industry pipeline. “There’s so many different hands in your works, your creative ideas and the money that you can actually gain from it. We wanted to give filmmakers their power back.”
Cally was equally direct.
“Man, we got to do it. We’re doing it because nobody else wanted to do it,” he said. “A lot of these film festivals have become a little bit predatory.”
And when asked whether Surrounded By Stories is intentionally a Black film event, Cally didn’t hesitate.
“Yes. we’re doing it for our culture so that our culture can have a place to story tell in an organic way and really be appreciated.”
Andre Royo Finds the Joy in the Difficult Moments
The showcase also brought together two actors with a special connection to The Wire.
Andre Royo, beloved by fans for his unforgettable portrayal of Bubbles, was there with Fragments of Joy, his deeply personal film about his mother and the early stages of Alzheimer’s.
Written and directed by Royo, the film stars Maria Broom, Andre Royo and Kristina Klebe and is executive produced by Don Cheadle.
Royo described the project as an intensely personal experience.
“Fragments of Joy is a personal experience about me and my mom sharing a moment and understanding that she’s about to deal with Alzheimer’s,” he disclosed. “I’m about to deal with Alzheimer’s as a caregiver and just getting ready and being present.”
He wasn’t simply making a film about caregiving. He was using filmmaking to process his own experience.
“I wanted to share it as therapeutic for myself,” Royo shared.
The 15-minute film captures those unsettling moments when something begins to change and both a parent and child are forced to recognize what is happening.
Royo’s message for others facing similar circumstances is beautifully simple.
“Find the fragments of joy,” he said, “be present, be focused, understand that it’s fleeting.”
Allan Houston’s Story Goes Beyond Basketball
The showcase also offered an exclusive sneak peek at filmmaker Greg Cally’s documentary The Wade and Allan Houston Story, centered on NBA star and New York Knicks legend Alan Houston and his father, Wade Houston.
For Houston, the film is far more than a basketball story.
“I think it’s a story of love. It’s a father-son story. It’s a legacy story,” Houston revealed.
His father was a pioneer who broke barriers in the 1960s, and Houston followed his path into professional basketball, ultimately playing on what he called “the biggest stage in sports,” Madison Square Garden.
But the documentary explores what happens beyond the court.
“It’s a story of a pioneer who broke barriers back in the ’60s and led his teams, led his family, and then his son comes and wants to follow in his footsteps and not just in sports, but just as a leader, as a person of faith,” Houston said.
“It’s a story of all fatherhood,” Houston said. “Most importantly, God the father, and that’s where we get our principles and values from, and that’s what we’re trying to pour down to the next generation so they can impact their generation.”
A Lineup Built Around Different Kinds of Black Stories
The breadth of Surrounded By Stories was part of its strength.
The showcase featured:
- Fragments of Joy, directed by Andre Royo, starring Maria Broom, Andre Royo and Kristina Klebe, executive produced by Don Cheadle.
- Old Gray Mare, directed by Courtney Glaudé and starring Devale Ellis.
- The Last Worker, written and directed by Naturi Naughton, starring Naughton and Tristan “Mack” Wilds.
- Cleo & Zion, from filmmaker Jordyn Rolling.
- Tigueronas, from Washington Heights filmmaker Imani Celeste.
- The Wade and Allan Houston Story, Greg Cally’s documentary, presented in an exclusive sneak peek.
These weren’t simply films looking for a place to land. They were stories being introduced to audiences in a space intentionally built around the idea that Black filmmakers should have room to experiment, create and be seen without having to dilute who they are.
For Cally, nights like this are career highlights in themselves.
“Anytime I get to tell a story and share it with people, that’s a highlight,” he said. “It’s hard to put it into one thing, but nights like this are especially special.”
Surrounded By Stories is ready to take those stories beyond New York. Cally revealed that the showcase will cross the water to Bermuda in November, bringing its celebration of Black storytelling to an international audience.
Article by Jazmyn Summers. Photos by Dominique Maddox. You can hear Jazmyn every morning on “Jazmyn in the Morning “on Sirius XM Channel 362 Grown Folk Jamz. Subscribe to Jazmyn Summers’ YouTube. Follow her on Facebook and Instagram.