Growing Up

Sixteen years in the making, Growing up highlights Fernando Pullum and the impact he’s had on thousands of youth in South Central Los Angeles. Through music, Fernando rose above his own harrowing childhood and for decades he’s passed that gift along as a teacher and now Founder of a Community Arts Center in Leimart Park that bears his name. Graduates of Pullum’s program have gone on to play with Beyoncé, Bruno Mars, Stevie Wonder, and Snoop Dogg, and won 6 Grammy Awards, but he’s proudest of their growth as men and women. "When I started teaching, I just wanted to make whole people. I had no idea that I would be creating artists.” The centerpiece of the film is a conversation between two Pullum students over the course of a decade. Despite tremendous odds, they find success, much of which they credit to Pullum’s influence. (Pan African Film Festival)