Jacobe Love Wins Take Back the Night Short Film Challenge

Jacobe Love

VALDOSTA — Jacobe Love’s “Loco Motives” and its investigation of gay rights and men as victims of sexual assault wowed the judges and took top prize at Valdosta State University’s 2017 Take Back the Night Short Film Challenge.

“The idea was inspired by the plot of the second season of ABC’s ‘American Crime,’ which was about a high school boy who was raped by another young man,” said the 21-year-old Columbus, Georgia, resident. “The school and the community's actions toward him was one of neglect, so I did some research and asked people their opinions on the topic …. The results were negative, full of homophobic, sexist, and misogynistic ignorance, so I felt it was time to tell this story. Too many people feel it is not possible for a man to be raped …. When I asked people their thoughts on a gay man sexually assaulting another man, they laughed, said it was not a crime, or were disgusted with my questioning.”

“I want this film to have an impact on society …,” he continued. “No matter the gender, race, or sexual orientation of a person, sexual assault is sexual assault and should not be defined as anything else. Like the writers of ‘American Crime,’ I wanted to flip the script on the topic of sexual assault.  We always see and hear how bad men abuse women, but we neglect to acknowledge men can also be victims of rape, so I used film to voice my opinions and hopefully start a dialogue about this issue.”

Throughout the spring semester, VSU invited all currently enrolled students, regardless of their major area of study, to participate in the Take Back the Night Short Film Challenge by submitting a short film about sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual abuse, or a related topic.

Love, who anticipates graduating from VSU with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in mass media and a minor in African American studies in May 2018, was awarded a $250 cash prize. His film was screened at the university’s annual Take Back the Night event.

Love enjoys using his talents as a filmmaker, actor, and poet to make a difference in the lives of others, and his efforts have resulted in several accolades. He won top prize at the 2014 Fountain City Poetry Slam in his hometown, Best Overall in Show at VSU’s 2016 Causes Film Festival, third place at VSU’s 2016 Undergraduate Research Symposium Three-Minute Video Research Competition, second place at the 2016 Red Door Film Festival in Valdosta, first place at the 2017 Red Door Film Festival, and the 2017 Claydon Hayward Barron Memorial Scholarship. His poem, The No Man Plan,” was published by The America Library of Poetry in 2014.

Love is a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta: National Honor Society for First-Year Students and the Society of Collegiate Journalists. He attends Words of Wisdom Christian Center Inc. in his hometown community and enjoys serving others through its holiday service projects. He is the son of Seritha Love and oldest brother to Janya Love-Hill and Joshua Hill.    

Take Back the Night’s history dates back at least half a century, to a time when women from many European countries gathered as a tribunal council to discuss safety when walking down public streets. The movement found its way to the United States in the 1970s, again emerging from a desire to make the streets a safe place at night. In 1973 protesters spoke out against pornography in San Francisco, Calif., and the murdering of women of color in Los Angeles, Calif., according to the Take Back the Night Foundation. Two years later, a march was held in Philadelphia, Pa., after the murder of Susan Alexander Speeth, a microbiologist who was stabbed to death while walking home alone.

Today, Take Back the Night focuses on ending sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, sexual abuse, and all other forms of sexual violence. While some events are women-only, many others, such as the event at VSU, include men as victims, bystanders, and supporters.

Please contact Jacobe Love at jlove@valdosta.edu to learn more. His award-winning short film, “Loco Motives,” may be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1D2w8Uq94xk.

Fun Facts
• Favorite Director — Spike Lee
• Favorite Actor — Denzel Washington
• Favorite Poet — Walt Whitman
• Favorite Quotes — “Make visible what, without you, might perhaps never have been seen” by Robert Bresson. “If you can dream it, you can do it” by Walt Disney.