From selling candy to heroin: on April 25, the Department of Performing and Media Arts (PMA) will hold a free screening of “Tony,” a new documentary telling the story of one man’s life. PMA Professor Bruce Levitt produced the film, with filming and editing by Peter Carroll. A talkback with Levitt, Carroll, and Tony will follow the screening, which is free and open to the public. The event will be at the Schwartz Center for the Performing Arts, 430 College Avenue in Ithaca.
The film tells how as a middle schooler Tony sold gum and candy to classmates before being approached by another student and his father with speed and marijuana. Tony became a mid-level, successful dealer selling large amounts of marijuana and heroin and any other drug he could peddle. While the film has a humorous side, it ultimately serves as a cautionary story of how drug dealing impacted the subject’s life, as well as those of his friends and family.
Levitt and Carroll crafted the fifteen-minute film from seven hours of interviews. Levitt received a $2,500 grant from the Cornell Council for the Arts to support the project. He and Carroll plan to expand “Tony” to a full-length documentary.
Julian Robison '20 is a communications assistant for the Department of Performing and Media Arts.
