$5 Cover's Geoffrey Brent Shrewsbury: A bird in the hand, a lot on the way

SHORTS, STICKS, READY TO GO: Geoffrey Brent Shrewsbury plays Nic in $5 Cover. In
'A New Drummer,' he's the old one — having become the center of, as Valerie June puts it,
"some drama." $5 Cover photo by Tommy Kha.

GEOFFREY BRENT SHREWSBURY (who goes by Brent) sits down at Huey’s in Midtown and I’m thinking we’re about to talk about music videos, working in Memphis, acting… maybe his own films. And we are.

But I’m not expecting that we’ll hit on American reliance on foreign oil or changing consumer behavior through persuasive filmmaking. Which, in the course of a rushed hour before $5 Cover is to premiere across town, we do.

We’re not long into chatting about Brent’s recently completed master’s thesis at NYU — a very nicely shot black-and-white short, “A Bird in the Hand” — when he dives into telling me that much of his own work is centered on “utilizing film for social progress, beyond gloom-and-doom pieces, about obvious problems.”

Turns out Brent’s blown back into town from New York, where he’s interning at the Clinton Global Initiative and using his media skills to advance awareness of the world’s most pressing issues.

Beyond his work at President Clinton’s organization, Brent wants his own budding documentary project, “Driving for Freedom,” to become a broader campaign. Beyond helping to foster understanding about the global oil issue, he feels it’s more important that his work spur tangible action.

His aspirations, “besides making cool videos and my own films, is to make a kick-ass media campaign,” he says. “ This is something that people need to see.”

Who’s shown up to talk here, Brent or Al Gore?

In $5 Cover, you meet Brent as he plays the fictional Nic: drummer, bartender, and apex of a love triangle involving Amy and Clare.

And true, Brent’s a musician of longstanding, having begun here in high school, then playing later with fellow $5 Cover actor/musician Ben Nichols in a Memphis punk group called Vegas Thunder.

Years later, among other things, he’s directed a music video for Alicja Trout, shot photos for Jack Oblivian albums and formed another punk band, No Comply. They’ll have a new album, “It’s Getting Hot,” out in July on Goner Records. You’ll also hear No Comply in an upcoming $5 Cover track.

But it’s when Brent repeatedly describes his existence as simply “between” New York and Memphis that his worldview — which seems to blend astute political awareness and punk’s driving insistence — makes the most sense.

“Theoretically, Memphis has always been a remarkable place,” he says. In part, that’s because it requires “a persistence to do what you believe in that overcomes regional and social obstacles — to create what you’re going to create, regardless.”

“I didn’t want to leave, but there comes a time when an exploration is necessary,” he says. In returning to film projects, work on music and appear in $5 Cover, “my choice was to come here after school and be able to afford free time to do what I want to do.”

Other than what he calls “moustache comedy acting,” Brent hadn’t done much time on stage or on screen until $5 Cover. “I’m really glad I worked on something with my friends,” he says. “(Craig) trusted me enough to let me go, and that means a lot to me.”

“A Bird in the Hand” is a quiet, fork-in-the-road film about two crime-prone men and a devoted girlfriend. “ ‘Three people, two directions — which way will Levi go?’ That’s the tagline,” Brent says.

One person, many different talents — which way will he go? That might apply to Brent.

Below the walkoff: a still from "A Bird in the Hand," and the trailer to "Driving to Freedom."

MEANWHILE: On his "The Intruder" blog, local writer/filmmaker Chris McCoy has begun a serial narrative on the makings of $5 Cover. Read the first installment here.

BACK AT THE FACEBOOK RANCH: Thanks for the many positive comments coming in about the show. Today, we hear from some new fans out West:

"What a creative way to introduce Memphis and these really amazing artists to the world! I have some wonderful new songs I am humming and singing! Thank you!" — Glennise Erica Heidt, Las Vegas

"I never knew how cool (Memphis) is, and it really is. Amazing music. I love this show, and it just came out!" — Kayla Marisol, San Diego

Thanks, Glennise and Kayla. Support these artists by spreading word of the show to others. We appreciate it.

COMING UP: The man at the steel guitar, and a girl with a very big gun. Now, here's Brent's trailer and a still from his film...

—John

The trailer for Geoffrey Brent Shrewsbury's "Driving for Freedom."

WHICH WAY TO TURN? Marcus Griffin and Mary Cullen Underhill-Pomeroy in "A Bird in the
Hand," a new short film by Geoffrey Brent Shrewsbury. Photo by Sean Davis.
©2009 New Perspective Films.