Lackawanna Blues (2005, TV Movie)

Starring:

• S. Epatha Merkerson
• Marcus Carl Franklin
• Yasiin Bey
• Carmen Ejogo
• Bill Simms Jr.
• Louis Gossett Jr.
• Macy Gray
• Terrence Howard
• Ernie Hudson
• Delroy Lindo
• Rosie Perez
• Ruben Santiago-Hudson
• Liev Schreiber
• Jimmy Smits
• Patricia Wettig
• Jeffrey Wright
• Barry Shabaka Henley

Storyline
In the 1950s and '60s, young Ruben Santiago Jr. (Marcus Franklin) lives in a lively boardinghouse in the blue-collar town of Lackawanna, New York, with his father (Jimmy Smits) after his parents separated. Run by the motherly Nanny Crosby (S. Epatha Merkerson) and her taciturn husband (Terrance Dashon Howard), the boardinghouse residents, including The Bandleader (Mos Def), singer Pauline (Macy Gray), and cabaret owner Dick Barrymore (Ernie Hudson), teach the young boy about life and art.

Hood 2 Hood - The Blockumentary (2005)

Directed by:

• Aquis Bryant

Wiki.org
The documentary takes a tour through American neighborhoods with high crime rates. Street gangs allowed Rich Kid Entertainment to capture the day-to-day actions of life in gang-ridden neighborhoods. Rich Kid Entertainment traveled to over 29 different cities and neighborhoods which included the hoods that many music artists grew up in, such as Jay-Z, Eminem, Nelly, Suge Knight, Mac Dre, Michael Jackson, 3-6 Mafia, Juvenile, T.I. and Nas.

The documentary was used by police to help in investigations. A Las Vegas man, an alleged member of the Gerson Park Kingsmen, has been charged with murder, attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.