Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell, the former frontman of seminal hip hop group 2 Live Crew, is headed to the big screen. The multi-hyphenate rapper, newspaper columnist and occasional politician stars in a short film that has been selected for the 2012 Sundance Film Festival.
The Life and Freaky Times of Uncle Luke is based on the 1962 French short film La Jetée, with plot elements taken from Luke's own life and career. The protagonist, who shares Luke's real name, Luther Campbell, rises from hip hop stardom to become a civil rights advocate — eventually serving as mayor of Miami. (The real-life Campbell ran an unsuccessful campaign for the mayor's office earlier this year.) The story further diverges from reality when a nuclear meltdown leaves Luke in charge of a town full of mutants.

“It's an honor to have a highly respected organization such as the Sundance Film Institute recognize me and my life as an important part of American culture by adding The Life and Freaky Times of Uncle Luke to their 2012 lineup,” Campbell said in a statement. “This film lets the industry, and the world, know that we have creative talent in Miami that rivals any other city in the world.”

Directed by Miami-based multi-media artist Jillian Mayer and produced by the Borscht Corporation, The Life and Freaky Times of Uncle Luke will compete against 63 other films in the Sundance Film Festival's short program in late January.

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 (Photo: REUTERS/Lucas Jackson /Landov)