Industry Vets Will Go Backstage "Interviewing Hollywood"

By Sr. Correspondent,  D. Kevin McNeir

GBM News will be giving you the news in an exciting new way with its upcoming video show, "Interviewing Hollywood," which premiers in the next few weeks. The show's host, creator and GBM News Senior Correspondent, Shahid Manning, is a Howard University graduate with over 20 years of acting and production experience. And he says that the best thing about the new show is that it allows him to get up close and personal with celebrated entertainers as well as those whose stars have yet to shine.

 




Shahid Manning
"We will interview local talent in entertainment, from the unknown to superstars and give the audience a peek into how Hollywood runs from the ground up," Manning said. "On the ground level we will be able to provide publicity to smaller productions and make the viewers aware that they are out there doing some great work."

Manning says one of the challenges he has faced living in Los Angeles is where to find good entertainment. He hopes that as more episodes for "Interviewing Hollywood" are produced, that the public's knowledge of quality productions will be heightened - from vocalists and dancers to actors of the stage and the silver screen.

"We want to raise the consciousness of our viewers and share the trials and tribulations of being an entertainer," he said. "We really hope that through the interviews people will leave with a keener sense of how things work behind the scenes. But more than that, we want to share the real lives of the people we interview, actors for example, and show the road they have traveled and what really motivates them. There is a lot that goes on with entertainment - it's not just the show and where it is playing - what really interests me is who these entertainers are and how masterpieces are first conceived and then made."

Stanley Bennett Clay
The first episode of "Interviewing Hollywood will feature playwright and author Stanley Bennett Clay and include clips from his new play, Armstrong's Kid [Lucy Florence Theatre]. The story is about a boy who accuses his teacher of child molestation and picks up 11 years later when the boy, now a man, returns home and seeks his former teacher's forgiveness.

"It's a great play - full of twists and turns and as we discover, things are not as cut and dry and one might believe," Manning said. "Stanley [Bennett Clay] has been in the business for over 40 years and does some powerful writing. It's the kind of piece that makes you enjoy going to the theater and is so provocative that you can't help but want to discuss the many themes that are raised."

Manning hopes to air new episodes weekly but says with this being the first episode, there is still some learning and perfecting that must occur. He says he is blessed to have some good people working with him and says that the team that has been assembled is putting together an outstanding product.

Veteran producer, camera man and video editor Terry Davis is heading up the technical work for the show and says, like Manning, that the show promises to be something "very special."
"This has been an amazing journey with Shahid and a lot of fun too," Davis said. "I would love to keep teaming up with him and handle the production side of things. Maybe one day we'll be able to hand off the post-production work to someone else but for the moment I guess I'm the man. What I basically do is take Shahid's ideas and then with the use of my computer, I make magic happen. We are almost ready to air the first episode and it has some great moments between Shahid as the host, interviewing both Stanley and his sidekick from the play."

Davis adds that he has always had a real passion for editing and shooting and besides his full time gig with MTV, he also runs his own production company, Higher Ground Productions, which does independent shooting and editing of documentary and feature films and commercials.
Manning heads his own business venture as well, serving as the CEO and founder of Blue Horizon, an entertainment company that produces film and television projects about urban gay life (www.myspace.com/bluehorizonentertainment).

"We hope this grows into something that a lot of people want to see and we genuinely want it to meet our viewers' requests and demands," Manning said. "We really want this to be interactive and also contribute to the growth of GBM News. Besides, it's a great opportunity for those entertainers who could use a little bit of publicity.

And so, as they say in Hollywood, on Broadway and in small theaters in every village and molehill across the globe, "It's Showtime!"

If you are interested in being considered as a guest for "Interviewing Hollywood," drop Shahid a note at shahidmanning@aol.com