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Marlon Johnson is a Miami native who has taken the film industry by storm. He started his production company, The Johnson Administration to further his passion, elevate the local film community and form a creative collective.
His body of work covers a wide variety of issues including social justice, cultural appreciation, and the transformative power of the arts. With this collective, Johnson produces compelling and inspirational stories under his full artistic discretion. The main goal of The Johnson Administration, as he puts it, is to “engage, inspire, execute, then repeat.”
Johnson recently joined the Deering Estate as an Artist in Residence in order to further explore his practice. With this program, the Deering Estate continues the legacy of Charles Deering. Deering was a great patron of the arts, supporting artists and scholars in several disciplines throughout his lifetime. The Deering Estate continues to seek to be a platform for creatives from all disciplines and backgrounds.
Besides his collective, Johnson has been able to establish a name for himself. He began at the University of Miami, earning bachelor’s degrees in Anthropology and Motion Pictures from the School of Communications. From there, he has become a 12-time Emmy award-winning producer and director.
Some notable pieces of work include his 2005 film Coconut Grove: A Sense of Place, commissioned by the Florida Film Commission, which follows race-based gentrification in West Coconut Grove. Historically, this was the home of the first Bahamian immigrants.
In 2006, the Ford Foundation reached out to Johnson to invite him to create the short documentary Breaking the Silence. He was able to put together a piece that narrated the rise of the HIV epidemic in the Black-American South.
With The Johnson Administration, he has produced incredible films, including 60 Summers, which comes out this summer. The film examines the development of the black civil rights movement to the newer Black Lives Matter movement, with several comparisons along the way. It also emphasizes how in 60 years change still is needed as the black community has not yet reached full equality.
Here is an interview with Marlon Johnson, where he discusses his work, influences, and future as he joins the Deering Estate as part of their Artists in Residence program:
Q: What inspired you to join the film industry and who would you consider as your main influences?
A: From an early age I always had a great appreciation for the arts. Growing up in an underserved community in Miami, where daily survival was the norm, I found the arts to be a welcomed vehicle from which I was able to reimagine the world. Film, more specifically, allowed my horizon to broaden and helped to transport me beyond my current surroundings. Creatively, it allowed me to draw inspiration from the rhythm and suspense in the masterful works of the great Stanley Kubrick.
Additionally, I was enamored by the fierce approach Spike Lee addressed racial stereotypes in his work and his subsequent ability to reframe the narrative for black filmmakers in the industry as a whole. I drew inspiration from the gaze of the prolific photographer Gordon Parks, the words of Alice Walker, Tarantino’s banter, and the sounds of Quincy’s composition.
In short, I cannot narrow down a single moment in which I joined the film industry. It occurred like the break of dawn. Film, and the arts more broadly, was my first sight of lightness and continued gradually until it broke the horizon.
Q: How would you describe your work?
A: I am a documentary filmmaker and most of my work is a reflection of the things I am most passionate about, the transformative power of the arts. I have a passion for the importance of social justice and its effects on a given society and I am passionate about the natural environment we all share and our effects on it.
My work attempts to find and tell the truth about the world around us as I see and experience it. I am a storyteller constantly staying curious about my surroundings and expressing my findings to my audience through a highly engaging and immersive approach.
Q: What would you consider as your favorite piece and why?
A: Asking me what I consider my favorite piece is like asking me which of my children I favor most. Like any loving parent might respond, I love each one equally and for different reasons. I have made films about the 1960s soul music scene in Miami…a film about an MIT professor composing a symphony based on the sounds of modern-day Detroit, a film about the challenges of urbanization and gentrification in historically under-resourced communities, a film about the criminal justice system and mass incarceration in the state of Kentucky, just to name a few.
And with every project I take on, I learn something new and unexpected about myself and my approach to the craft. For me, my films are like bringing a new offering into the world and I am very proud of each and everyone equally.
Q: As an Artist in Residence, how does this program help you further your career?
A: As an Artist in Residence at Deering Estate, I believe that the virtues here have helped to enrich my practice by allowing me to reimagine ways in which I approach my artistry.
One of Deering’s chief virtues is its physical environment. Having a working studio that is surrounded by local history and architecture in addition to a multi-acre nature preserve helps to inspire and stimulate one’s creativity. This, along with an inquisitive and endlessly engaging staff, strikes a dynamic that makes for a truly remarkable experience that ultimately helps to expand my career and practice.
To check out more information on this gifted artist, visit Johnson’s website at www.thejadmin.com/.
