IN NEED OF SEAWATER | COMING JANUARY 10, 2026

In Need of Seawater follows writer and filmmaker Mark Anthony Thomas as he returns to the poems that shaped his early creative life. Marked by a twenty-year distance from his book The Poetic Repercussion, the film traces how those words carried him through personal upheaval, artistic discovery, and the evolving cultural landscape of America. Directed by Richard Yeagley, the documentary blends staged performance, intimate readings, and rare archival footage to illuminate the emotional and social world that forged Thomas's voice.

What emerges is a portrait of a young artist wrestling with identity, history, and the search for clarity-set against the backdrop of a changing country. As the first installment of a poetic documentary trilogy, In Need of Seawater revisits the past not as nostalgia, but as a map: revealing how language anchored a life, how expression became survival, and how the earliest creative impulses continue to guide the journey forward.

Reviews:
Take 2 Indie Review: A Smashing Success - Review
Cinemacy: ‘In Need of Seawater’ Review: Poetry Comes Alive
Utah International Film Festival: In Need of Seawater Film Review
In Need of Seawater: Performance Takes Centre Stage in This Docu of a Poet

Film Festivals and Awards
Chicago Indie Film Awards - Nominee
East Village Film Festival - Finalist

FILM CREDITS

Director:
Richard Yeagley

Producers:
Mark Anthony Thomas, Richard Yeagley, Scott Burkholder, Dustin Kuhns

Cast:
Ziaire Mann, Amanie Meade, Royal Cross, Erica Ligon, Desmond Johnson

Cinematography:
Allen Irwin, Umit Gulsen, Austin Ahlborg

Archival Producer:
Lizzy Barrett

Colorist:
Carter Knopik

Sound Mixing and Design:
Cristina Wen

Production Assistants: Vito Cetta, Michael Brown

Cover Artwork:
Jeff Kent

Additional Photography:
James Robinson, Christopher Moore, Lyndon Winchester, Carucha L. Meuse