Though Chiwetel Ejiofor is an Oscar-nominated actor known for films such as 12 Years a Slave, Love Actually, and Doctor Strange, he is also a talented director. He has made several short films and made his feature directorial debut with The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind, which debuts this week at Sundance. His next project just got the green light now that it has been fully financed by the Los Angeles Media Fund and producers are signed on and ready to get the project up and running.

The Short and Tragic Life of Robert Peace is adapted from the novel of the same name by Jeff Hobbs. The story follows young Robert Peace from Newark, NJ who was determined to make a better life for himself and make his family proud, earning a full ride at Yale and graduating with honors in biochemistry and biophysics. He seemed to have fulfilled his dreams but his life was tragically cut short when he was shot at only age 30 by drug dealers in his hometown. The novel and film will follow his journey and the journeys of those affected by his death.

This is a story that is relevant now more than ever and Ejiofor is taking strides to ensure that it is a story that is heard. Antoine Fuqua (Equalizer 2, Training Day) is also on board to produce along with Rebecca Hobbs, wife of author Jeff Hobbs, Andrea Calderwood, and Kat Samick.

The crew is determined to do justice to Peace’s story and he is surely in capable hands with Ejiofor.