Louis Armstrong prequel film targets $10,000 crowdfunding goal

Historian Allen Y. Kimble, Jr. is developing a feature film about the Colored Waif’s Home and the overlooked people who helped shape young Louis Armstrong in New Orleans. The project is seeking $10,000 for a proof-of-concept short to attract filmmakers, supporters and production partners.

Why it matters: - The Colored Waif’s Home project aims to spotlight the New Orleans figures and institution that helped guide Louis Armstrong before he became a global jazz icon. - The film centers on mentorship, discipline and opportunity as a way to tell a broader story about how community institutions shape young lives and musical history. - The project is also positioned as a preservation effort for a lesser-known part of New Orleans history.

What happened: - Historian and researcher Allen Y. Kimble, Jr. announced development of The Colored Waif’s Home, a planned feature film. - The film is conceived as a Jazz and Louis Armstrong prequel rooted in New Orleans history. - The story will focus on Captain Joseph G. Jones, Manuella Duplessis Jones and music instructor Professor Peter Davis. - The project is seeking to raise $10,000 through crowdfunding for a short proof of concept. - The official film website is the project site.

The details: - Kimble says the film will explore the people and institution that helped shape Armstrong before his rise to fame. - The Colored Waif’s Home became, in Kimble’s telling, more than a boys’ institution and a place where musical talent could take root. - Kimble says he brings more than four decades of research to the project. - Kimble also says he has a family connection to the history through marriage into the Jones family. - His research includes family recollections, historical documents, photographs and memorabilia tied to the Home, the Jones family and Armstrong’s early years. - The proof of concept is intended to show the historical story, principal characters, tone and cinematic vision of the proposed feature. - The goal is to use the proof of concept to attract filmmakers, collaborators, supporters and production partners. - The project invites support from New Orleans citizens, cultural and historical organizations, businesses, musicians and civic leaders. - Media, partnership and film inquiries go to Allen Y. Kimble, Jr. at vinnythepug@gmail.com or 504-518-9765.

Between the lines: - The project is trying to turn a local historical subject into a film package that is easier to finance and produce. - By centering lesser-known names around Armstrong, the film seeks to broaden the public memory of who shaped jazz history. - The crowdfunding target is modest, which suggests the proof-of-concept phase is meant to validate the concept before a larger production push.

What's next: - The campaign will need to reach its $10,000 target to move ahead with the proof-of-concept short. - If the short is completed, the project will use it to seek deeper production backing for a full-length feature. - Kimble is also looking for community and institutional support in New Orleans to help bring the story to the screen.