Chainmail 1 is the first film of the Chainmail series and features Amartey’s brother, Solomon Golding; the first black British male to join the Royal Ballet Company.

 

The chainmail garment in the film took a year and a half to make and weighed 65kg; more than Solomon at the time of the shoot. The song used in the film is ‘boom bye bye’ by Buju Banton, a 90’s Jamaican dancehall classic, which was banned from being played in public in the UK due to its extremely violent homophobic lyrics. The song is nostalgic for Amartey but also calls for Solomon’s death as a gay man.

 

The film uses the sensationalistic portrayal of black males in the British media and rife homophobia as entrance points to explore universal human themes of victimhood and the elusive line between oppressor and oppressed.

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Trailer Below