Harvey Pullings, II

Photography – Chicago

A native of the south side of Chicago’s Chatham community and Princton Park, Harvey Pullings, Jr (born Feb. 14th, 1986) is an independent filmmaker, photographer and writer. A graduate of Columbia College Chicago, and Moraine Valley Community College, His thematic preferences in cinema are focused on perspectives of the “common man’s turmoil," the struggles of identity, the effects of a father's legacy and the impact on children, as well as race relations and violence. Pullings grew up in a household of film lovers and religious, blue collar workers. A middle class upbringing that made his perspective of inner city life a humble and warm viewpoint, with an acknowledgement of obstacles, inherit to the progression of people of color in America. His family religiously enjoyed a variety of eras of cinema and TV; the golden era of Hollywood to 70s cinema, to the current Blockbuster era, as well as the progressive subject matter of TV programming. All this including a diverse upbringing of music and cultures, greatly effected Pullings’ interest in both art and society. ​ Having originally entered college to major in Advertising, he soon changed his studies to film as a career concentration, focusing on Film Directing and Genre Studies. This led to Harvey becoming interested in sociology and semiotics, ultimately leading him to photographing urban life and the conditions of inner city Chicago. While attending Columbia, Harvey interned for the Chicago division of Allied Integrated Marketing, where he assisted in regional marketing, skewed marketing and promotion of films and TV for studios: A24, Universal Studios, Disney, ABC and NBC. He would also assist in Q&A photography for special screening events and studio reports, capturing images of Alex Garland, Eddie Redmayne and others. During this time, Pullings also shot concert photography for hip-hop artists Curren$y, Mobb Deep and Joe Budden, during their stops in the Chicagoland area, as well as the Suicide Girls’ Blackheart Burlesque show. ​His final internship came as an Extras Casting Assistant, for the controversial Spike Lee joint,  Chiraq. An experience that Pullings credited as “The boost of confidence and moment of clarity I needed while pursuing this industry.” His first major project, the short To those with Good Intent, was accepted into four festivals, domestically and internationally - winning the Audience Choice award at the 2017 Chicago International Reel Shorts Film Festival. Recently, he has released three photo books. Across this Land and Children of the Concrete Father. Two bodies of work that focus on the unromanticized elements of Chicago’s sprawling, urban character. The book, 9803, is a collection of concert, burlesque and shoots outside of his street narratives.​