“Necessary Allies: We Are More Alike Than We Are Different,” a documentary from Big Afro Productions, premiered on July 11, but the overwhelming response garnered a second screening later this month.
Directed by Sherry Harris, “Necessary Allies” dives into the idea of true allyship and ways different communities could live in harmony. Featuring testimony from local religious and community leaders, the documentary addresses cultural differences and what it takes to truly live in harmony.
“Necessary Allies” returns to the big screen for its encore screening at 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 26 at the Kan-Kan Cinema.
Harris, who is the founder of the nonprofit film production organization Big Afro Productions, grew up in Indianapolis, having attended Arsenal Tech before following her brothers to study engineering at Purdue University. However, Harris said her love of science coexisted with her love of the arts, as she continued writing throughout high school and college until she eventually decided to try her hand at film.
“The way that I got into film is because I had been writing for a long time, and I thought I want to take it to the next level,” Harris said. “All of my films would be focused on educating our youth on their rich heritage and how they can use … that greatness that their ancestors had inside of them to be great as opposed to going down a wrong path, possibly ending up in prison or dead or in jail.”
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Since its inception in 2023, Harris has produced three films through Big Afro Productions — “Young Gifted and Black,” “I am She: The Matriarch of America” and the latest “Necessary Allies.” Each of the films aims to address Black and brown youth in the community, encouraging them to be proud of their heritage, Harris said.
“Necessary Allies” is focused on the ways that people are more alike than they are different, despite different cultural or religious backgrounds. As all of her previous subject matter, Harris said the idea for the documentary “came from the Lord.”
“When the Lord gave me the message, He said, ‘Talk about allies and how having allies can bring us together, so that we can work together as opposed to being divided as we are right now,’” Harris added. “Living in America. We’re divisive. … I just wanted to show people that regardless of our background and our culture, how we can live, how we talk, how we pray, how we worship. We want the same things. We all want to be safe; we all want to make a comfortable living. We all want to live in peace.”
The first thing she did was start reaching out to faith leaders and community advocates to ask them what they believed an ally is and how having allies can help people live together in harmony despite cultural differences.
Harris even reached out to Pope Leo XIV for an interview.
“I will reach out to anyone,” Harris said. “They said that he was not available, but they felt that this project was a good project and they would be praying for me.”
In the end, the film features interviews with eight local and national religious and community leaders such as Rabbi Aaron Spiegel of the Greater Indianapolis Multifaith Alliance; Miriam Acevedo Davis, CEO of La Plaza; Pastor David Greene of Our Purpose of Life Ministries; Ahmed Alamine, director of Religious Affairs, Indianapolis Muslim Community Association (IMCA)/Masjid Al-Fajr and Texas State Rep. Gene Wu.
“Necessary Allies” premiered at the Kan-Kan Cinema on July 11, and Harris said the reception was amazing and she’s been getting emails from churches to do private screenings ever since. The film received a standing ovation and positive feedback during the post screening Q&A. Beyond the rave reviews, Harris said a lot of people told her the film was “timely because of what we’re experiencing in our nation.”
However, for those coming to see the documentary for the first time or those returning for a rewatch, Harris’ message is the same:
“It doesn’t matter whether you’re white, you’re Black, you’re Asian, you’re African, you’re Latino. I believe we all want the same things,” Harris said. “I just want to show people that we are more alike than we’re all different. We want the same things, but if we would stop allowing this division to separate us and come together, we could possibly live in harmony.”
“Necessary Allies: We Are More Alike Than We Are Different” is screening at 1:30 p.m. on Sept. 26 in Theatre 1 at the Kan-Kan Cinema, 1258 Windsor St. The film is 75 minutes long and tickets are $13. For more information, visit bigafroproductions.org.
Contact Arts & Culture Reporter Chloe McGowan at 317-762-7848. Follow her on X @chloe_mcgowanxx.
Chloe McGowan is the Arts & Culture Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper. Originally from Columbus, OH, Chloe has a bachelor's in journalism from The Ohio State University. She is a former IndyStar Pulliam Fellow, and has previously worked for Indy Maven, The Lantern, and CityScene Media Group. In her free time, Chloe enjoys live theatre, reading, baking and keeping her plants alive.
