‘Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes’ Director on Finding Truth in Storytelling

Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes is a film about how dreams can be snuffed out in an instant. Imagine growing up and seeing this happen time and time again, wondering if you’ll be next. Written and directed by Marcellus Cox, the film asks, how do you make the most of your life? How do you hold on to your dreams?

The film follows Jamarcus, a teenage baseball prodigy, who teeters between street life and moving on from that life. He lives with his grandmother who constantly encourages him to want and do better because she knows his friend group is no good. To keep him from getting into trouble, she enrolls him in the Big Brother/Big Sister program and his mentor Jasper is picking him up. Jamarcus is hesitant but eventually agrees to meet the man. Jasper is actually a good man and the two have a nice time. The duo talk about their hopes, dreams, and fears. However, the night takes a turn that neither expected when both are the wrong place, wrong time.

I spoke to Cox about the film, his personal experiences surrounding the topic covered in the film, and what he hopes others take away from watching Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes.

Cox’s path to directing is rooted less in family inheritance. He credits his grandmother with first opening the door, recalling Who Framed Roger Rabbit as the movie that hooked him at nine years old. His grandmother also introduced him to Charles Burnett, Haile Gerima, Ben Caldwell, Billy Woodberry, and Julie Dash. These are artists who commit to bold, culturally specific storytelling. His personal faves include Taxi Driver and Ivan’s Childhood to Killer of Sheep, Throne of Blood, and The Defiant Ones, a group of films that may not have directly shaped Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes, but shaped the filmmaker making it.

For him, directing was never a pivot. It was the dream from the beginning, and his answers make clear Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes arrives not as an isolated project, but as the product of a lifetime spent absorbing the possibilities of what movies can do.

The Nerds of Color: The studio that produced your film is titled Films with a Purpose. What does making films with purpose look like for you? Is there a particular theme you like to tackle or are you looking to tell stories from your personal experience that have meaning?

Cox: Films with a Purpose is owned and run by the great Sandra Evers-Mainly, she’s the one who came up with the perfect name for a studio haha. But what films with a purpose look like to me is something that’s extremely personal. Something that has true meaning with every single moment of the film from the biggest to the smallest moments. You feel the artist’s passion in every single frame as if it’s their last.

When it comes to themes in films I tend to focus on truth, focus on humanizing individuals and revealing a lost soul to the screen. Humanity is a big part of my storytelling and I’ll always lead with that emotion as I’m crafting a story that has something of great importance. I also like to add my own personal experiences if they apply to the story, how would I be in a situation like this. I would want someone to tell the truth but at the same time try to see me as someone.

The opening quote of Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes references death without meaning. Why was it important to put the audience in this mind set before anyone enters the frame?

It was important to me because nobody in his situation leaves this earth without meaning. Everybody has a story. Lamont Taylor’s life, whose life the film is based on, had meaning. He was a talented baseball prospect, loved by his friends and family, and had a smile that could light up an entire room. That’s meaning. For me, I had to remind the audience as we go down this road even if you think you know the outcome. Just know that nobody lives their life without meaning. You mean something to somebody.

When adapting the film that is inspired by true events, how do you create the balance of editorializing creating fiction while adding true elements to the story?

I wanted all of the facts that I can get my hands on. In the case of Lamont, the only person I was able to get information from was his grandma, who was such a sweet woman. Then I had to see how much of a story I could form with just the events of the tragedy, so I outlined the story and started writing. I did some investigation as I went to his school, (Fremont High in South Central LA), met with some of the young Black baseball players, and interacted with them. The notes I gathered from hanging with them gave me what I needed to craft the character from there.

There is this idea that people are tired of seeing stories of Black people filled with tragedy. However, those stories are still important because tragedy is a part of life. Can you talk more about the theme of mentorship, family, trauma, and how those all intersect together in your short and why you made the creative choice to conclude the film this way.

I can understand how some folks feel because I feel the same way at times when it comes to this subject because it’s been done so many times. However, if it’s a story that resonates with me and my heart then I’m gonna tell it. These stories have to be told as a reminder that these issues still exist and we have to do better to overcome. With Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes, I keep Lamont Taylor’s name alive, and hopefully prevent future situations like this one.

The themes of mentorship, family were important to me because there are people who want to see you succeed and live out your dreams, even when it doesn’t feel like it. You need these people in your corner, more than ever now with the way the world operates. If you’re fortunate enough to be blessed with a support system, take full advantage of having people around you that love you. Trauma being intertwined with these messages was even more essential because of the truthful nature of life and how unforgiving it can be.

Can you talk a little bit about craft and logistics? From cradle to grave, how long did it take for you to put on this production?

It took a while to get made and it almost didn’t see the light of day. I saw Lamont’s story on KCAL 9 in LA in 2019 and the story shook me to my core and I knew I had to tell this story. I tried to raise funds for the film to no avail. I revisited in 2021 and reached out to Lamont’s grandma and she blessed me with details about him and gave me her blessing. Even then, funding was a problem and I tried again for two years and still nothing. In 2023, Lamont’s grandma passed on and it made me work harder than ever to get this made.

Finally in 2025, I met Sandra Evers-Mainly of Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center, she was the hero that blessed this film. Without her having the faith and belief in me and my vision this film doesn’t get the chance to become a reality. I owe every bit of the success of this film to her for believing in the film. So thank you to Black Hollywood for saying we believe in this and they got it made!

Can you talk about how you conceptualize the idea, how you got the crew together, finding the right actors, deciding on what shots, editing, and the final cut.

After finding funding, getting a crew together was easy. I worked with a lot of them before so that was just a phone call away.

As for casting, I knew I was going to cast Stephen Cofield Jr. as Jasper. It was tailor made for him. He’s a brilliant actor and I knew he was perfect. However, the role of the grandmother Esther was more challenging but once I saw Ruthie, she reminded me a lot of Lamont’s grandma. Once she and I spoke, I had to cast her. It took me the longest to cast the lead, Jamarcus. I auditioned about 40-50 actors before finding Duane. Seeing his reel let me know I had found my main actor. He just had natural talent and charisma that you simply just can’t teach, and did Lamont’s story justice.

With the shots, I saw the film in my head so I knew what I wanted to keep and cut instinctually. During production we shot during daylight savings, so it killed two of my most prized shots. I had to work around that in editing and was very delicate piecing the film together. The festival success and the critical acclaim on the film is proof of that.

List some things you hope the viewer walks away with knowing after watching Jamarcus Rose and Da 5 Bullet Holes.

Having folks in your corner is a blessing and should be looked upon as that. Next, live life to the fullest and follow your dreams. It’s never too late in life to do so, and know that even when you’re at your lowest your life has meaning, not just to you but others and always keep that in the back of your minds. We’re here for a reason.