Angel Kyler, a Morgan State University Screenwriting and Animation major and Baltimore native, is the executive producer and creative director of a new web series called “Social Theory,” a scripted drama about struggling artists in Baltimore. It is set to premiere on YouTube Thursday, Oct. 24. Along with three other producers (Charlese Johnson, Candace McCray and Sherean Jones), the busy student makes time to dedicate to his project, putting on casting calls and other events to promote the show. I was able to catch him in between filming, as he and his team were getting ready for their debut.
Manyi Abangma (M.A.): “Social Theory,” how did you come up with the name?
Angel Kyler (A.K.): The name, I pretty much came up with it, you know, just from the top of my head. My producers and I were just in kind of a struggle to find an impactful title of the show because it sort of represents everything else. I was reading, looking in books and just watching movies and everything else. And then I was like, ‘theory,’ and then I’m like ‘social.’ I’m just saying so many words. It just came up.
M.A.: What does filming consist of? Where have you guys been filming?
A.K.: We’ve been mainly filming on the Morgan State University campus. We had an open mic night April 28 in Murphy Fine Arts, in the recital hall. It was an event to bring people out, sort of a promotional kind of event. But we were also filming for the episode, so various artists from Baltimore came out to perform and even some artists here at Morgan came out. It was a pretty big turnout.
M.A.: What inspired you to do this?
A.K.: I was working on another web series, and I really wasn’t enthusiastic at a certain point because of the way things were going when it came to the message it was supposed to be delivering. I didn’t really feel the message anymore. And if you’re not passionate about something, then it isn’t going to work. I really wanted a strong message of Baltimore artists, and to showcase them in a positive light; other than “The Wire,” and those things that we are known for on a more commercial scale. I wanted to put Baltimore artists on the map to express something positive about the city.
M.A.: I saw the trailer, and it kind of reminded me of “The Game.” A lot of people said that too. What is “Social Theory” really about?
A.K.: It ties into art and it kind of flips back and forth. It’s a scripted drama web series about the struggles of three Baltimore artists and eventual triumphs of one artist specifically. His name is Hawk; he’s a boxer and a rapper. The teaser showcases him as a boxer. The description on the teaser is, “the art of love and war.” The triumph is love and the struggle is the art. But the struggle can also be beautiful. So we centered a beautiful female in between those two fighting over her. So Hawk is the boxer and the rapper. The other guy who is also in the teaser, his name is Mitch, and he is the rich boy. He has his own struggles with family, his father specifically. He wants to be an artist, but his father isn’t really supportive of him, like some Baltimore artists that I’ve seen. We have other characters that tie in too, but those are the significant protagonists of the entire show: Hawk and Mitch.
M.A.: What are your hopes for the show?
A.K.: My first hope is for it to just deliver a positive message to Baltimore, not just Morgan State University. To show that [there are] film majors here and we can do big things and be known for something positive other than you know, engineers and architects here at Morgan. That the screenwriting and animation/film program at Morgan is doing something special and positive and that students are actually working hard.
A.K.: Of course, I would hope for it to be a success.
Anyone who would like to get involved creatively or financially, or has questions about the project can email Angel Kyler at socialtheory@live.com.
