CHICAGO — Chicago native Robert Townsend has done it all. He is all things writer, director, actor, comedian and producer, whose portfolio includes work with entertainment mainstays like Denzel Washington, Ruth Carter, Jenifer Lewis, the Wayans family, Halle Berry, Taye Diggs and Beyoncé in her debut acting role in MTV’s 2001 musical “Carmen: A Hip Hopera.” He was the director of the highest-grossing stand-up concert film of all time, “Eddie Murphy: Raw.” His prolific nature extends not just to films like the satiric “Hollywood Shuffle” and musical drama “The Five Heartbeats,” but television networks like HBO (“Robert Townsend and His Partners in Crime” ), Fox (“Townsend Television”) and the WB (“The Parent ‘Hood”).

Townsend, an uncredited extra in 1975 Chicago classics “Cooley High” and “Mahogany,” may have made his mark on the world in Hollywood, but he hasn’t strayed from his roots — he’s directed an episode of the Chicago-based series “Power Book IV: Force” and portrays Emmanuel Adamu, chef Sydney Adamu’s father, in “The Bear.”

Townsend is in Chicago this week to host a pop-up film festival Dec. 6-7 — one that will showcase films significant to him and subsequently raise funds for the Chicago Westside Branch NAACP and The Answer, Inc., the Forest Park-based organization that supports people of color with intellectual or developmental disabilities and their families. Townsend is childhood friends with Karl Brinson, Westside Branch NAACP president, and Debra Vines, CEO and founder of The Answer, Inc.

“I’m excited to come back to Chicago,” Townsend said. “I was seeing all the stuff going on in Chicago, and it really touched my heart. We’re in crazy times right now. Human rights are under attack and I go. ‘I got to go to Chicago and help. I got to do my part.'”

Made possible by Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, Columbia College Chicago and Creative Cypher, the film fest will take place at Columbia College Chicago on Saturday and the Chicago Cultural Center on Sunday.

“The Spook Who Sat by the Door” and “The Five Heartbeats” will be shown Saturday, followed by question-and-answer sessions. Sunday’s screenings include “The Meteor Man” and the Townsend-directed episode of “Power Book IV: Force” followed by a Q&A with the cast of the show. Festivities wrap up with a comedy showcase at 7:30 p.m. at The Comedy Bar, 162 E. Superior St.

We spoke with Townsend about his work, life and legacy before his Chicago visit. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Q: Fifty years in entertainment. Is there an aspect of your life that you wish people would ask more about?

A: I wear so many different hats. I’m reoccurring on “The Bear.” I’ve been directing “Force” in Chicago, and Lena (Waithe) wants me to come in February and March — I’ll be directing “The Chi.” I was recently doing my one-man show, “Living the Shuffle” in St. Louis … my most personal story, because I get into my childhood — being raised on the West Side of Chicago by a single parent. I lived in K Town. I’m also a tenured professor at USC and I have four wonderful children. I’m living my best life, being an artist and a father. When people ask me questions about my life, it’s kind of a fantasy. Being that kid on the West Side with all these dreams … now I’ve lived all of my dreams plus. Part of coming to Chicago is to let people know you can live your dreams too.

Q: When is “Living the Shuffle” coming to Chicago?

A: I started doing the show years ago, getting ready to take it on the road. Then they said, there’s something in the air called COVID and the world shut down. I finally have gotten back to doing my show. But I stay busy, so it’s like, ‘Can I do it while I’m doing this and that?’ I’m trying to figure it out. Then I’ll bring it to Chicago. When I think about my life, it’s not to be believed. This little Black boy from the West side of Chicago with these big dreams and every step of the way there’s these twists and turns, and he always wins. You’ll laugh a lot, you’ll cry some and then you’ll leave inspired.

Q: Is there a film that you directed or created that speaks more to your legacy?

A: The best is yet to come. God whispers in my ear all the time. He goes: “In 2026, you will be reborn.” I’ve created a lot of work that people love, but I have a deep well of ideas and stories, and I’m just tapping in.

Q: A lot of the work you’ve done has been ahead of its time. What’s percolating for you these days?

A: I don’t talk about my ideas. When you talk about ideas as an artist, you let air out of the balloon. … That’s something I say to young creators all the time: Don’t talk about it. Protect it, cover it, and just develop it quietly. I think that as an artist now in this generation, you keep your ideas close to you and develop them and really take time to nurture them before you talk about them.

Q: Do you find yourself explaining Chicago to people not familiar with the city, giving them the real narrative?

A: When I think about growing up in Chicago, it’s (the film) “Claudine.” In “Claudine,” they lived in the ‘hood, but there was so much love, so much joy. It’s a good, warm feeling. The ‘hood was always glorious and happy. Yeah, you had moments where it’s like “Cooley High,” moments where it’s dangerous and gangster. But then it’s fun and loving; it’s great music, it’s love stories, and there’s the backbone of the community, the church. When I talk about Chicago, I bring the energy of what “Claudine” was and what “Cooley High” was, because there’s a lot of love and a lot of great people.

Q: Being an artist in this moment, how do you maintain being as authentic as possible?

A: In moments like this, you don’t see obstacles, you see opportunities. There’s always a way to pivot. Everything that’s going on right now in the world, as much as we go “oh my god,” I see people marching with signs that want democracy, that believe in justice, that believe in freedom — from the 17-year-old boy to the 93-year-old grandmother. That gives me hope. New voices, new activists, are being born and finding their voice because of tough times.

Q: Skye Townsend from “A Black Lady Sketch Show” is your daughter, correct?

A: Yes, ma’am. When she was a little kid. I would take her to school, and we would play a radio game where some music would come on, and I would do a voice. She would do a voice. When she was little, she would walk the red carpet with me, pull on my coattail, and look up with those little eyes and go, “Daddy, when are they going to talk to me?” We walk the red carpet now, and I look at her, and go, “they’re talking to you now.” I’m beyond proud of her.

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Robert Townsend’s Pop-Up Film Festival runs Dec. 6-7 at Columbia College Chicago, the Chicago Cultural Center and The Comedy Bar; tickets and more information at events.eventnoire.com.

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