New Production Underway: Wil Darcangelo & the Tribe
GHP is happy to share that we’re about a month into production on a new short documentary about WIL DARCANGELO AND THE TRIBE, a music group and youth empowerment project based in Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The Tribe began as a music program at Fitchburg High with two core rules: everyone is welcome and nobody gets kicked out.
“That ended up bringing in all of these kids who didn’t fit anywhere,” says Wil, the organization’s creator. “I didn’t do it on purpose — I didn’t put up a poster saying ‘the island of misfit toys, right here’— just the philosophy of it ended up attracting people… The kids who are the most challenged, who have the most trouble getting along — kids with massive social anxiety, depression…obstructive defiant disorder — kids who who get kicked out of class all the time, whose friends are only friends until they screwed up. The thing that I am most proud of is… well, I started a club that I couldn’t have gotten kicked out of.”
"I just want to empower people — you know? People feel special if they’re just given a chance to do something that’s bigger than themselves. That’s all that matters to me."
— Wil Darcangelo
Wil & the Tribe recently accomplished a dream by travelling from Northern Massachusetts to perform in the middle of Times Square, NYC. While the success of the performance is something to be celebrated, what was particularly impressive is their success as a community. This should not only be a source of pride for the Tribe and the parents of younger members, but can serve as a proud note for their home city of Fitchburg, as well. By accepting and celebrating their differences, they created a tightly bonded group that was able to decide upon a common dream, rally together against the odds and actually achieve it. You couldn’t have asked for a better representative for your hometown.
Wil & his foster daughter Lavender Bell — image by Ryan Chatel of REC films (GHP)
"All what seems to matter is that they know they are loved — that it doesn't matter if they can sing, it doesn't matter if they can dance, it only matters if they try."
— Wil Darcangelo
The GHP team was able to tag along with them on their trip to perform in Times Square — a story we’re looking forward to sharing as we enter post-production on this doc, so check back soon for updates on our progress.
A big thanks from all of us at the Gay Hero Project goes out to everyone working to make this short happen: Wil & Jamie Darcangelo, Deb Perry Demazure, the Tribe, and the GHP team so generous with their time (Jeremy Kingwill, Ryan Chatel, and Kevin Dynia — to name a few).
For more short documentaries and creative works from the GHP, check out GHP Presents
