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00:00Essence is honored to present the Essence Spotlight Moment
00:02to the highly anticipated Apple TV Plus
00:05two-part documentary, Number One on the Call Sheet.
00:08All right?
00:09All right?
00:10Woo!
00:12These two powerful films take us on an inspiring journey
00:15with some of Hollywood's most extraordinary
00:17black women and men,
00:19many of whom are with us in the room tonight,
00:21shining a light on what it means to be a black actor
00:23through their stories.
00:25They share their breakthrough moments,
00:26their blueprints of success,
00:28and honoring the trailblazers
00:29who paved the way before them.
00:31Now, both films will debut on Apple TV Plus
00:33on Friday, March 28th.
00:35Let's take a look at Number One on the Call Sheet.
00:38What's this about?
00:39All right, boys, rolling.
00:41Number One on the Call Sheet.
00:43Number One on the Call Sheet.
00:44Must be real.
00:49You know, it's like, yo, number one.
00:54Pictures up!
00:55Too late to run now.
00:56Oh!
00:58Oh!
01:02You were number one on the call sheet for that?
01:04Yeah, I must have been.
01:06If you're number one on the call sheet,
01:07you are the subject and not the object of the narrative.
01:11It's an accomplishment for most actors.
01:13I didn't know how many opportunities I would have
01:16to be first.
01:17It means we made it.
01:18The actors of now,
01:19we don't get here without your Denzels and Morgans.
01:23Still, I'm not a movie buff.
01:25This really comes down to the work.
01:26I'm just an actor.
01:27I'm no different than you.
01:30But when you see me coming,
01:31stand back a little bit more.
01:35Where are you at?
01:36You're constantly ranking yourself.
01:37There is something wonderful
01:38about being able to navigate that
01:40and still feel like you aren't giving up who you are.
01:43It was very important to me to learn early in the game
01:46how to do everybody job.
01:48Now I have flashbacks.
01:50They got me having flashbacks.
01:52Like, damn.
01:54Show people there is more to me than meets your eye.
01:57If I'm being transformed,
01:59the audience will be transformed.
02:02They might call us a minority.
02:04I ain't taking nothing minor.
02:05I'm major, bro.
02:08The audience is a huge part of our work
02:11and they need to see themselves.
02:13I can't even begin to describe what this is like.
02:16This is the moment.
02:18We are storytellers.
02:21We put asses in seats.
02:23I thought I was fly.
02:24I feel like I was fly and got what I wanted.
02:32Once you get to the top of the mountain,
02:36create more mountain.
02:41Are you done?
02:44With what?
02:48Woo!
02:51Hi, I am Shala Lynch.
02:52I am the director of the women's number one
02:55on the call sheet.
02:56Essence, thank you!
03:00So we have so little time, so let me get to it.
03:02This is a story about climbing to one goal,
03:05to be number one.
03:07Our leading ladies found their purpose.
03:10This film is told through the stories
03:12of 17 unique, deliciously talented,
03:16like a box of chocolate, ooh.
03:18You know, my women's studies class folks
03:21are like, ah, cringe, not in the cringey way.
03:24Ooh, which one?
03:26They're so beautiful on the outside
03:28and unexpectedly, with unexpected
03:31and sometimes surprising flavors on the inside.
03:35We designed the lighting and the set
03:36to create the stage, the outside,
03:38to be beautiful like them.
03:41But it is the women that chose to show up
03:44and share just a little of their inside, their truth.
03:52Thank you for sharing.
03:54It is beautiful.
03:55Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful here.
03:58Thank you to these women behind me, da-da-da-da.
04:01Also Angela Bassett, Halle Berry, Viola Davis, and Whoopi.
04:06And to all the women who shared their stories.
04:09We don't always have a chance through our work
04:12to really hear and see each other.
04:15As the director of this film,
04:17I hope you feel seen and heard, all of you.
04:22But all of us in the room
04:24and all of you out there watching the broadcast,
04:28I hope you feel inspired to wrestle with
04:30and find your purpose and what it means to be
04:34number one on your call sheet.
04:36Thank you to all of my collaborators and department heads.
04:41People, read the credits.
04:42These folks are amazing.
04:44Thank you to Fox Holt, Jamie Foxx, Atari Turner,
04:47Heartbeat, Kevin Hart, Candice Wilson, Story Syndicate,
04:51Dan Cogan, and with John and Kate.
04:54Thanks to all the EPs,
04:55especially Mishka Brown and Nanette Nelms.
04:58Vince Morgan, Violet, and Julian,
05:01you are my heart at home, thank you.
05:04And Reggie Hudlin.
05:07Thank you, you are my brother.
05:09Yes, I am.
05:12Hi everybody, I'm Reggie Hilden.
05:14Hi.
05:17I really want to thank Essence for the opportunity
05:20to preview our film and talk to you guys
05:24and really want to thank Apple
05:25for giving us the opportunity
05:29to tell these really vital stories.
05:32Several years ago, I did a documentary for Apple
05:35about the life of the alpha,
05:38the big bang of all of us, Sidney Poitier.
05:41And as a filmmaker, spending two years
05:44inside the life of Sidney Poitier was transformative for me.
05:48So when Jamie Foxx, Kevin Hart, and Atari Turner
05:52came to me and pitched the idea of number one
05:54on the call sheet, which is kind of a bookend
05:57to the Sidney movie, so instead I said,
05:59okay, here's the beginning, and here's where we are now.
06:03Here's today's black movie stars.
06:05I was like, yeah, let's go make this movie.
06:07And I was like, yeah, let's do it.
06:09I was like, yeah, let's go make that.
06:12This movie, which is all of us,
06:16you know, I'm doing one, she's doing one,
06:19and it's all one big, beautiful project,
06:21is a once-in-a-generation opportunity
06:24to chronicle black success in an industry
06:28that shapes global perceptions of black people.
06:33We assembled an A-plus team,
06:34including my producing partner, Byron Phillips,
06:37my dear friend Shala, my sister,
06:40and we had real talk conversations
06:43with some of the smartest,
06:45hardest-working people in the world.
06:47And we don't always, in the entertainment business,
06:50get characterized that way,
06:51but that's who these people are.
06:54And there are things that will be said
06:56when you see this thing, things that Taye Diggs said,
06:59that Will Smith said, that Eddie Murphy said,
07:01that have been ringing in my head since I interviewed them.
07:04And I cannot wait for all of you
07:06to learn these lessons.
07:09The actors in this documentary
07:12represent all the greatness in this room.
07:16Whether you're stepping into a boardroom
07:18or stepping onto a movie set,
07:20you have the ability to inspire, influence,
07:23and ultimately change the world.
07:28The movies that we made for, number one, The Call Sheet,
07:30are designed to build and inspire strong black men
07:34and strong black women.
07:37And it's coming out right on time,
07:40because we know right now
07:41there are people who are very intimidated by us.
07:44And I get it.
07:48Black women read more than anybody else.
07:51They're the most educated, and they can't stop us.
07:53So, thank you.
07:56I hope you enjoy the films.