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'He was shot to death over a cell phone:' Bibb County woman directs film about gun violence

After witnessing a tragedy two years ago, Stacy Jenkins decided to write and direct a film about gun violence in Central Georgia.

MACON, Ga. — Almost two years ago, on February 23, 2017, Stacy Jenkins and her teenage daughter witnessed a traumatic event in Macon.

"We saw a young man fall to his death. He was shot to death over a cell phone," she recalls, "My daughter saw that. Before she graduated high school, she got to see someone fall to their death. That's serious."

The victim was a 25-year-old male, and that was the fifth homicide of 2017.

Fast forward to the following year, 2018, where there were 41 homicides, and 16 of the victims were age 23 and under.

Jenkins says these numbers are exactly why she wrote and directed her film How to Die Young in Middle Georgia?: A Life Saving Documentary, which is set to premiere this Saturday.

"In this film, you're gonna see the collision of immaturity, acting off impulse, not thinking it all the way through, and sometimes, they just don't have the tools to make those decisions," she says.

With the target audience being young black males, she decided to enlist the help of a few males in that community. One of them was Middle Georgia State professor Jeffrey Tarver.

"I was excited to speak my piece about what Stacy was trying to do the film. We need to bring awareness, not about young men dying in middle Georgia, but why they're dying and what are the solutions to alleviate the problem," says Tarver, a criminal justice professor.

He says the movie addresses more than just gun violence. "A lot of times, we put out these vague types of things that we say are gonna help our people. No, we need to sit down at the table and we need to talk about real tangible solutions," he points out.

Jenkins and Tarver both say they want this movie to start a discussion.

The premiere of the movie is set for Saturday, February 23, at 6 p.m.

It will take place at Central Christ Church at 751 Key St. in Macon.

To get a free ticket to the premiere, click here.

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