Treme: Do You Know What It Means [TV pilot episode]. 2010. USA. Directed by Agnieszka Holland. Screenplay by David Simon, Eric Overmyer. With Khandi Alexander, Rob Brown, Kim Dickens, Wendell Pierce. DCP. 79 min.
Tracing the cognitive map of a devastating loss, Treme’s pilot opens three months after Hurricane Katrina, putting the soul of the city—and the musicians, artists, and entrepreneurs that comprise it—at center stage. Through hustling trombonist Antoine Batiste (Wendell Pierce), tavern owner LaDonna Batiste-Williams (Khandi Alexander), English professor Creighton Bernette (John Goodman), Mardi Gras Indian Chief Albert Lambreaux (Clarke Peters), and a ragtag group of supporting characters, David Simon’s acclaimed series traces the changing fate of a city in recovery through the interlocking paths and indomitable spirits of people who need each other despite what divides them.
Fifteen years after its 2010 premiere, Treme stands as one of the rare television shows that gave genuine voice to New Orleans’s modern cultural heritage at a time when its residents felt (and continue to feel) largely abandoned by Hollywood.