In the depths of winter – especially this winter – we could all use a little heat. But not in the way things get fired up in the town at the center of our feature story.
The Miseducation of John Mark is about struggle within the fictional city of Eastwood, where its citizens are angry and divided after the death of an unarmed black man by a local police officer. This death leads to protests and threats of violence. When one activist – John Mark – steps forward to try and get both sides talking, he is swept into something far bigger: the politics of Eastwood and the people who are set on seeing things go their way.
Like our very real American society the last few years, this story deals with civil unrest, racial tension, gentrification, police violence, and political extremism. It’s not gratuitous; the purpose is to motivate conversation and suggest solutions to solve these issues. The content and references will hit home for many people. In this work, the actors and sound designer bring the passion and emotion of these issues to life, and the writers have been thorough in bringing as many different character perspectives to the story as possible.
The Miseducation of John Mark opens our ears and minds to issues too important to let fade into the background, issues that are still terribly commonplace.
While the story echoes recent events, the production has been in the works for over four years, created and cultivated by Joshua Williams. He states, “[What] I want to get across in this series is to love your neighbor as yourself. If we did that, it would be easier for us to solve issues plaguing our world. Change requires communication. If we’re not willing to do that with each other, things will only get worse.”
The first episode of The Miseducation of John Mark was released in November of 2020, and has been regularly updating every few weeks since. We take you back to the beginning of this startlingly realistic examination of modern America with episodes 1 -3: “The Man on the Ledge,” “Who is John Mark?” and “The Trial of Officer Collins.”
Will you recognize yourself in any of these characters?
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