Andrew Rizzo James Whitner’s A Ma Maniére has established itself as one of the most significant sneaker industry players of the last decade, releasing several highly-acclaimed projects with Jordan Brand and raising the bar for storytelling through several mediums. Adding to the brand’s ten-year anniversary festivities, A Ma Maniére just surfaced a teaser for their upcoming film called “While You Were Sleeping,” arriving at theatres soon.
The antagonist in the story is the Creative Resource Agency (CRA), a dystopian-like organization conceived to impose a “Black Tax” on culture-shaking minority creatives. The term “Black Tax” has multiple meanings in the real world, but it most commonly refers to the financial burden borne by successful black people who provide support to less financially stable family members and friends. That’s of course a trend that begins with inequalities in our social systems, which afford considerably less opportunities to people of color to this day.
The protagonists are a group of globally-renowned entrepreneurs including Jae Tips, Nina Chanel, Chris Gibbs, and Angelo Baque among several others, all of which somehow cross paths as the plot unravels. Alongside the film itself, A Ma Maniére is putting up wheatpaste posters in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, echoing a motto of “Create At All Costs.” The brand’s 10th anniversary celebration also consists of the recent A Ma Maniére Beach ribbon-cutting, and while not directly correlated, the release of A Ma Maniére x Jordan 3s on August 21st.
Reflecting on what’s to come, James Whitner states: “This is just the beginning of what promises to be an unforgettable adventure. The teaser, wheatpasting campaigns and ongoing activations are designed to create touchpoints at every level and an ongoing experience that keeps our audience engaged and eagerly anticipating what’s to come. Stay tuned, this is going to be fun. Really, really fun.”
