Amazon Prime’s streaming service picked up a local film for distribution -- “My Music,” which was written and directed by Florida A&M University Professor Kenneth Jones. He calls it a “love note to caregiving.”
“My Music” is about 16-year-old Ruth, who takes care of her great-aunt Inez, who has dementia. Meanwhile, in her dream life, Ruth is a singer on stages out of Tallahassee’s past, like the Red Bird Café.
Jones, who has long cared for members of his own family, says it gives her a respite.
“In her case she plays these old records, and when she plays the old records, she’s a singer, and she’s just having this wonderful life," he recounts. "And at the same time, she still has to recognize that ‘I am the sole source, the sole caregiver -- I am the lifeline for my aunt. And what decisions do I need to make based off of that?’”
Jones says caregiving doesn’t have the same place in American life that it once did, and he wants to change that.
“There was a time in American history where being my brother’s keeper was not about being a Democrat, was not about being a Republican, was not about being an independent," he says. "It was just being my brother’s keeper. And hopefully, again, ‘My Music’ and the movie that we have can help to get back to some of those things.”
Jones says getting picked up by Amazon Prime is a game-changer for his third film, which was also honored by the Sedona Film Festival.
“My Music” was shot in Tallahassee, and the cast and crew are local.
