What I Learned From Spike Lee's Student Film

I've always thought that, to be great at anything, I must be a student of the game. Sometimes, my studies can lead me into obscure territories. As a passionate cinephile that dreams of one day making a movie, I always want to learn cheap tricks that can help my no-budget movies look as good as possible. As such, I sometimes study the student films of filmmakers I admire. These little-known pictures have helped me understand what my idols did before anyone gave them a proper budget.

I've decided to tie my research into this month's commemorative observation: Black History Month. To celebrate, I took a look at Spike Lee's 1983 student film, Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads. Watching this one-hour short, I noticed that Lee had a mix of ability and ambition even before the entire world knew his name. In 1983, Lee understood the importance of collaboration, storytelling and style. His cinematic competence proved that, even at 26, he was a formidable director who didn't need a big budget to make an exciting movie.

When I watch the credits of any movie, I'm always reminded that making a film is a collaborative process. To make Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop, Lee enlisted his family, friends and classmates to join the crew. Not only did he collaborate with these people for this movie, but he formed a team that would continue to work with him for years to come.

Spike's father, a successful jazz musician, composed the score for Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop and went on to score Lee's next four feature films, including Do the Right Thing. The actor Tommy Hicks, who played Lovejoy in the film, would go on to act again for Lee in She's Gotta Have It (and steal the show, imo). Monty Ross, who plays Zack, is also Lee's producing partner who co-produced seven Spike Lee joints, including Malcolm X. The cinematographer, Ernest Dickerson, continued to work with Lee on six features, including Mo' Better Blues. Most notably, Lee's NYU classmate, Ang Lee, worked as an assistant director on the short — he would later go on to direct such classics as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Life of Pi.

See, I could have masters in my crew, but if my movie doesn't have a good story, it doesn't have anything. In Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop, Lee uses a simple story device that I find extremely effective for creating intrigue. The device is to introduce the audience to a world previously unknown. My favourite movies, such as The Wolf of Wall Street and the Harry Potter series, revealed new worlds that I previously didn't know existed. The secret is, I have access to these worlds, if I only know where to look.

I try to look at my own reality to discover secret worlds. It may not be something revelatory like Hogwarts, but there are elements to my life that, if told to a stranger, they would further explanation. These are my creative advantages, and Lee knew how to use his to their fullest benefit. It takes some intuition and creativity to discover one of these not-so-secret worlds, but isn't that what it's all about?

With Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop, Lee unveils the unknown world of the numbers game. This illegal, lottery-like game is the core piece to the film's theme of inner-city crime. It also informs the conversations the main character has with his wife and others. I doubt Lee went to the library to look up the ins and outs of how to run the numbers. Indeed, the movie's dialogue makes it clear that Lee knew what he was talking about. By using something unique that he was familiar with, Lee added realism to his student film.

Being unique to a community or group of people is usually enough to entice me. I hope that those who knew about the numbers game appreciated the recognition, although with crime you can never be sure. Those who don't know—like little ol' me—feel like they're being let in on a secret. It creates a sense of camaraderie between myself and Lee, and that camaraderie is what makes me a fan.

I think that a story is only as good as its characters. When creating characters, Lee showed me that it's best to leave my idealism at home. In Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop, I appreciate the main characters because they feel so real. Donna Bailey's character, Ruth, is a prime example of this. Ruth is a realist and says things that people don't want to hear. She's loveable even when she makes choices that go against the movie's protagonist. She's both wise and flawed, but her flaws make her human and believable. Though her actions get in the way of the ideal ending, they also make her relatable and sympathetic. Despite being a secondary character, Ruth is the most memorable because of her naturalism.

Although Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop is a small movie, it still teems with life and with social commentary, painting a full picture of the community portrayed. This is something that Lee never shies away from — that even in an hour-long movie he takes time to provide allegorical details makes his voice unique. Some may not like it, but I do. It reminds me of the importance of localizing my story. Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop doesn't deal with grandiose, global issues but rather issues central to Lee's neighbourhood. By telling a universally relatable story in a hyperlocalized setting, Lee was able to create something that felt fresh but still related to people all over, even in Vancouver. 

On top of a strong team of collaborators, wise story structure, unique characters and a sense of community, Lee's student film also reminded me of the importance of cool style in a movie. Lee's style is iconic and it's clear from watching Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop that he had that style from the start. Yet, I don't think that Lee was chasing trends. These days, with all the outside influences, it's easy to think that there is a only a monolithic way to have style. But I must remind myself that it's not like that at all. If I want to have a cool style like Lee, it begins with highlighting what I'm passionate about.

For Lee, one thing that has always been cool to him is sneakers and fashion. Lee has the characters in Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop talk about Converse while wearing Nike sneakers and watch breakdancing while rocking Adidas tees. He shoots closeups of dancing, sneakered, labeled feet. This movie came out years before Michael Jordan was making the Air Jordans a household name. Yet, Lee decided to focus on Nike sneakers as something to desire and something that separated the b-boys from the working stiffs. Lee shows what's cool to him by expressing his passions, and it resonates with me although I have different sensibilities.

So, what did I gain from watching Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop? It's reminded me of what is possible even without a budget. By using my friends and family to create a movie, I can establish relationships that might pay dividends later in my career. As well, I can powerfully engage an audience by revealing an unknown world and creating characters that are both flawed and relatable. All the while, putting my community and my perception of cool to the forefront can help me create a singular voice. If I utilize these techniques and get lucky, I can create some of the best movies of the next 40 years, just like Lee has done since 1983. But, for now, I'm still taking notes.

Joe's Bed-Stuy Barbershop: We Cut Heads1983