MTV Documentary Films hosts St. Louis Superman screening at Embarcadero
Short film depicts battle rapper turned Missouri state representative
by Luke Wrin Piper, Staff Writer
MTV Documentary Films hosted a Nov. 13 nighttime screening in San Francisco of St. Louis Superman, a short documentary that follows a Missouri man’s journey from local battle rapper to Black Lives Matter activist to Missouri state representative.
The documentary opens with Franks sitting outside with his young son King. Gentle and paternal, Bruce tells King:
“You’ll learn about August 9th real soon. Something else happened on August 9th.”
Michael Brown was shot and killed by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, MO, on Aug. 9, 2014. The shooting of the unarmed black teenager by a white police officer sparked outrage that led to the Black Lives Matter movement. Franks took a direct role in the burgeoning activist movement that quickly gained international attention.
Before his activism in Ferguson, Franks was well-known in the St. Louis battle rap circuit, performing under the name Ooops.
“I am Ooops at all times. I am Bruce Franks Jr. at all times. We are one person — there’s no alter ego,” Franks explained.
“Battle rap is one of the purest forms of debate — really no rules as far as what you can and can’t say. So it’s very candid.”
In Superman, we watch Franks as a mentor, activist, artist, firebrand and father, all while representing Missouri’s 78th state house district.
“I see a lot of me in [my son] now…when I was six years old, my big brother got killed,” said Franks.
“And so we have really different lives as far as how we’ve grown up with challenges and barriers and the amount of trauma that we’ve been introduced to.”
The 28-minute film focuses on Bruce Franks Jr.’s struggle to affect change in the Missouri House while staying deeply connected to the people in his life and his community.
“We have 163 representatives, and 117 of them are from one particular party that don’t understand my community and aren’t willing to sometimes,” said Franks.
“What substantial legislation can I get through that’s going to speak to a major need for my community?”
Franks’ question is spoken as a statement as he sits in the statehouse, the Great Seal of the State of Missouri hovering over his shoulder. Franks seems as burdened by the potential as by the responsibility.
Franks resigned from the Missouri House in July 2019. “I was able to build some bridges,” said Franks. “But I feel like I can be more effective outside the system.”
Throughout his term in office, he never stopped showing up to rap battles. Now free from the position, Ooops said he has bigger plans than ever for his role in the community by “showing battle rappers how to use this platform to spark change in their community. To be the voice that needs to be heard, while still remaining who they are to the people.”
His cadence comes from a natural place — the intensity within him untethered and uncontained. His bars are dynamic and direct. Franks is comfortable in his lyricism, and those who hear him speak respond electrically.
On the night of the screening at Embarcadero One, the sharp consonants and jeers of a St. Louis rap battle streamed out of the theater doors. Just outside in the foyer sat the film’s co-director Sami Khan and producer Poh Si Teng.
“Bruce was really reluctant, but [co-director] Smriti was super persistent and kept reaching out to him,” said Khan.
“Bruce had been burned before by journalists parachuting in and parachuting out,” said Teng.
Smriti Mundhra co-directed St. Louis Superman alongside Sami Khan. “After his experiences with the media in Ferguson, Bruce was understandably skeptical about a filmmaker from Los Angeles writing to him about wanting to tell his story,” said Mundhra.
“We were always mindful to keep the narrative in his hands.”
St. Louis Superman was commissioned by Al Jazeera English. After a showing at Tribeca Film Festival, the film’s director received a call from legendary filmmaker Sheila Nevins on behalf of MTV. It is the first film to be acquired by MTV Documentary Films, a new venture spearheaded by Nevins, who has 32 individual Primetime Emmy Awards.
Despite no longer being in elected office, Franks still sees politics as a viable avenue for effecting societal change. When asked about his thoughts on young people entering local politics, Franks replied: “Do it, and do it unapologetically. If those ahead of you will not pass the torch, if they will not meet with you, if they will not try to help you, give you the necessary resources in order to strive, then take it. Figure it out.”
“If somebody tells you to wait your turn, it’s probably your turn,” he said.
