SARASOTA – Day 6 of the Sarasota Film Festival and this time we’re taking you an inside look at a short documentary film highlighting the life and career of Coach James Ward.
“My film is about my dad, and my dad is Coach James Ward who has been in this community for a very long time. He was born here, raised here, he went to college. Came back and started teaching and coaching in Riverview High School,“ said Jessika Ward, director of Sharing Dad.
Ward a Sarasota native was inspired to direct the film Sharing Dad after learning of her father’s influence across the Suncoast.
“As a teacher there and a coach there he took a bunch of people under his wing and he became a mentor to a lot of students who then become adults and go out in the community,” said Ward.
Ward’s influence for creating the short documentary film was to show that there are positive male African American role models in the community.
“The documentary basically talks about being a role model, being a black male role model, I think that they’re overlooked or people think that they don’t exist that there are not these black men who are role models and I’m really inspired by my dad,” said Ward.
Throughout her filming process Ward even discovered some unknown stories about her dad.
“I did not know he bought someone their first car. He has five kids including me, and he got all of us our first cars but people outside of his own biological children so I thought that was you know incredible,” said Ward.
Sharing Dad premiered on Monday but there is still a chance to see it on the big screen. The next screening is April 12th at 8 at the Regal Hollywood Theater.
