“CYCLE” to Premiere at Milwaukee Film Festival: A Powerful New Documentary Honoring Ty’Rese West, Confronting Police Violence, and Demanding Real Change

MILWAUKEE – More than five years in the making, a vital new documentary will make its world premiere at the Milwaukee Film Festival this May, telling the urgent and symbolic story of Ty’Rese West—a vibrant 18-year-old Black teenager from Racine, Wisconsin, whose life was cut short by a police officer in 2019. Titled CYCLE, the film confronts the brutal patterns of police violence in America and asks: how many more names will we forget before we finally break the cycle?

Powered by raw storytelling and relentless investigative reporting, CYCLE cracks the code of human emotion, reigniting hope in the defeated and opening minds once closed to difficult truths. Beautifully crafted with care and precision, the film’s true purpose is to push us to confront injustice with eyes wide open—not by relitigating a case the system has already buried–but by shining a light on the broader truth and sparking a movement toward lasting, transformative change.

Watch official trailer HERE.

Directed by Racine natives Laura Dyan Kezman and William Howell of LionArt Media, CYCLE was created in close collaboration with the West family, particularly Ty’Rese’s mother, Monique West, who has courageously fought for five years to share her son’s story in full. The film reframes Ty’Rese as a son, a brother, a symbol, and a spark, rather than a statistic.

“This isn’t just a movie—it’s a call to action for my hometown and America. We want audiences to understand how our justice system operates, to see the stark contrast between official investigations and our own independent findings, and to feel the weight of what’s at stake,” said Laura Dyan Kezman, Director. “Our goal is to save lives by making this film. Period.”

Ty’Rese was shot twice in the head and killed by a police officer in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, for riding his bike without a light just blocks away from his community’s Juneteenth Day celebration in 2019. There was no body camera footage. No witnesses. No charges filed. CYCLE investigates what happens between hashtags and headlines, where too many stories like Ty’Rese’s are lost. Through exclusive access to police records, deeply personal verité footage, and voices from legal experts and activists, the film draws out the deeper system that enables—and erases—this violence.

“CYCLE may seem a timely response to the Trump administration’s erasure of Black Lives Matter Plaza or DEI, but this film isn’t about any era. This is a problem baked into American society,” said Co-Director, William Howell.

Five years after the George Floyd movement, CYCLE is not reactionary. It transcends political cycles and news trends to ask: What will it take to end the pattern? What does real accountability look like? How can we reimagine safety, dignity, and justice—for everyone?

At each screening, audiences are encouraged to wear gear from the CYCLE Impact Campaign Collection as a visible show of solidarity with the West family and the movement for change. These screenings are more than events; they are community gatherings, spaces of reflection, and steps toward a just future.

SCREENING SCHEDULE – MILWAUKEE FILM FESTIVAL

Sunday, May 4 at 1:45 PM – Oriental Theatre

** May 4th screening will include a special talkback with the filmmakers and family. **

Tuesday, May 6 at 3:00 PM – Downer Theatre

Wednesday, May 7 at 3:00 PM – Downer Theatre

Tickets On-Sale TODAY, April 16 at 10 a.m.

[Get Tickets and Festival Info Here.]

A LIONART MEDIA DOCUMENTARY

Directed & Produced by Laura Dyan Kezman

Co-Directed by William Howell

Executive Produced by Lacey Sadoff

Edited by Laura Dyan Kezman

Visual Effects by Gab Gonzales

Original Music by Immortal Girlfriend

Director of Photography by Laura Dyan Kezman

Cinematography by Spencer Ortega

Co-Executive Produced by Keith McQuirter

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.