(April 2025—Los Angeles) – GRAMMY-nominated poet, writer, and human and civil rights activist Kevin Powell hosts the Los Angeles premiere of his directorial debut, WHEN WE FREE THE WORLD, on Friday, April 25, at the James Bridges Theater, 1235 Charles E. Young Drive East, 1409 Melnitz Hall, LOS ANGELES. At the northeast corner of the UCLA campus in Westwood, adjacent to the Broad Art Center and the Murphy Sculpture Garden. Doors open at 6 p.m., program begins at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free. Still, seating is available on a first-come basis. To confirm attendance, email kevin@kevinpowell.net.
Produced and written by Evangeline Lawson and Kevin Powell through the company Brooklyn Diego, WHEN WE FREE THE WORLD is a deep-dive movie that asks and answers the question, What does it really mean to be a man? The documentary features 70 male voices across five generations, from teenagers to 90-somethings. The film also showcases an all-Black-male original soundtrack conceived by multi-GRAMMY-nominated producer Vidal Davis.
For media inquiries, please contact Billy Johnson, Jr., at billy@mediaandrepertoire.com.
Powell wants WHEN WE FREE THE WORLD to spark dialogue about how we define manhood. “I spent about 6 years working on this doc film, from the early ideas of it as a short to the feature-length final version it is now,” Powell says. “We have carried this film through COVID, presidential elections, the tragic videotaped death of George Floyd, Black Lives Matter, the #MeToo movement, and so much more. I am very proud of what we’ve created, to really look at how we define manhood from many angles, inclusive of so many different types of males. It is my humble hope that this film, WHEN WE FREE THE WORLD, will spark all kinds of conversations, all kinds of action steps and solutions, and push folks to ask the question we ask in the film: ‘What is a man?’”
Evangeline Lawson, a native of Southern California, explains her excitement around this Los Angeles premiere of WHEN WE FREE THE WORLD: “It’s exciting to be able to premiere this film back home, and at my alma mater, UCLA, both of which shaped me. I’m grateful to be able to share stories that aren’t often heard from this unique perspective. As a woman working on this film, it was important that I handled each man’s experiences with care, as storytelling shapes how people view themselves. This film is such a valuable resource for everyone and hopefully opens the door to much needed understanding, compassion and dialogue that will stimulate change. “
At the end of the film, covering entire closing credits, viewers will hear the forthcoming first single entitled, “I’m A Man,” a collective of Black male musical artists, and inspired by the famous Civil Rights-era I AM A MAN photos. There has never been a movie about manhood like this.
