Justin Jordan '03 On Crew of New Movie, Selma

January 10, 2015

"It's been amazing," says Justin Jordan, a 2003 graduate of DePauw University, who served as a graphics production assistant in the new movie, Selma. The film, starring and produced by Oprah Winfrey, is generating Oscar buzz.  "I’m working with people I admire and follow," Jordan tells the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. "To be a part of something like this is a blessing."

"Jordan’s job involved making sure the sets in the movie depicting the South were authentic," reports Paul Wyche. "The movie pays homage to the 1965 March in which a group of demonstrators faced violence in attempting a 50-mile trek from Selma, Alabama, to Montgomery to demand the right to vote for blacks."

Wyche writes, "Jordan, a graduate of DePauw University, had volunteer experience with Shauna Williams, a film production designer, whose résumé includes working with Tyler Perry. 'Six months later, I get a call from her telling me that she wasn’t going to be able to do a project and if I wanted it,' Jordan said. 'The project turned out to be Selma.' "

Jordan encouraged his wife, Charity, to audition for the film, and she landed the role  of Viola Lee Jackson.

Justin Jordan tells the newspaper, "She shared dressing rooms, make-up artists and hair stylists with Oprah. It was crazy."  Of Winfrey, he adds, "As soon as you meet her, it’s like you’ve known her all your life. She’s like, ‘Hi, baby. How you doing?’ She’s like my auntie."

The piece concludes, "[Jordan] said there is a bit of irony that the 50th anniversary of the march comes at a time when racial tensions in America are once again a topic. 'Black lives matter,' Jordan said, referencing publicized shootings of unarmed African-American males. 'We have come so far, but have so far to go.' "

Access the story at the Journal Gazette's website.

 A computer science major at DePauw, Jordan won the First Place Web Series Jury Award at the 2013 Hollywood Black Film Festival for his web series, Mommy Uncensored. Learn more in this summary.

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