Tag: San Francisco Black Film Festival

Filmmaker Soumyaa Behrens tells the newly discovered story of Abina Mansah, who in 1874 brought a case of illegal enslavement against her African slavemaster before the British courts in the Gold Coast, in what is now Ghana. “Abina and the Important Men” is an animated graphic depiction of what happened in this historic case. Come watch the story and discuss what you think about the controversial cartoon at the San Francisco Black Film Festival.

Identity is a big topic in the Black community, because we live under white supremacist capitalistic domination here in the U.S. and in the so called Western world. In the dramatic short “We Love Moses,” sexual identity among Black people is what is being discussed in a way that is not often talked about. Check out filmmaker Dianne Edwards as she talks about “We Love Moses,” which was selected to screen this year at the San Francisco Black Film Festival.

“Brazilian Wavy” is a comedic short on a political satire tip written by Brooklyn-born filmmaker Kirk Henriques. The subject is the economic relationship between Blacks and Koreans, which has not been very beneficial to the Black community. This is one of my favorite shorts in the San Francisco Black Film Festival this year. Get more info at sfbff.org. Check out filmmaker Kirk Henriques in his own words.

“I Am Still Here” is one of the most disturbing must-see films in the San Francisco Black Film Festival. “I Am Still Here” describes the horrors of child sex trafficking through the eyes of Layla, an American child being trafficked in America. Although it is a work of cinematic fiction, it is based on real events, according to the filmmakers. I interviewed Mischa Marcus and Stephanie Bell about their feature length film, “I am Still Here,” and here is what they had to say.

One of my favorite movies in the San Francisco Black Film Festival is a racially polarizing thriller named the “The Red Effect.” Although the plot is about a fictitious murder of a Black man by a white supremacist, while watching you can feel the real spirits of Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown, Sandra Bland and countless other Black people who made national news because they were murdered by racist vigilantes or police.

“Taking Israel” is a film executive produced by Dr. Eric Winston about a study-abroad program that he oversaw at Wilberforce University that exposed Black students to a semester of Israeli culture, society and politics. It has been selected to screen at the San Francisco Black Film Festival mainly because it deals with Black people trekking past U.S. borders for answers to questions as citizens of the world.

In an era where the Koreans own the multi-billion-dollar Black haircare industry in the U.S., we need to know about and learn from Black business pioneers like Madame Sara Spencer Washington. Atlantic City’s Madame was a multi-millionaire in the 20’s, running a business empire called Apex Hair and News Co. Her grandson, filmmaker Royston Scott, sat down with me to discuss his documentary called “The Sara Spencer Washington Story,” which will be screening at the SF Black Film Festival.

“Cream” is a political and socially conscious short that is set in Oakland in 1968, at the time of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. The film deals with identity, self-respect and knowledge of self in a Black family setting. Check out filmmaker Alexandra Lebona as she talks about her film, “Cream,” which has been selected to screen at the San Francisco Black Film Festival.

When people mention horror, they may think of Alfred Hitchcock or Stephen King. Now we have Antwon Rollins, a Black man, whose mind is immersed in writing and shooting horror, but who is able to tell stories from a slightly different perspective: a common Black perspective. Check out “#Victim 505” at the San Francisco Black Film Fest, as well as check out the filmmaker Antwon Rollins as he talks to us about filmmaking and “#Victim 505.”

One of the most beautifully told stories and exceptionally written scripts in the 2017 San Francisco Film Festival presents itself as a current-day Black love story, a drama called “Boston2Philly.” It’s about a young man who’s devastated by his past and starts his life over in a new city trying to recover from what life has dealt him. I talked to filmmaker Ralph Celestin about his cinematic history and the making of this brilliant film.

One of the dopest documentaries that will be screening at the San Francisco Black Film Festival is “BlaxploItalian: 100 Years of Blackness in Italian Cinema,” which looks at the perception of Black people, born in Italy, in the their national media as well as the cultural currents that it took to get them included in working in cinema and today’s fight against type casting, where Blacks are only given certain characters to play. Check out filmmaker Fred Kuwornu.

The film written by Arthur Walls, “A Hundred Blocks,” was sold out at the Oakland International Film Festival screening a few weeks ago, with some of Oakland’s top athletes in attendance, including boxing champion Andre Ward and the legendary running back and newly signed Raider Marshawn Lynch. It will be screened next at the San Francisco Black Film Festival. Check out Arthur Walls in his own words.

“Oakland in Blue” is a short movie that was made by locally grown, Los Angeles-based filmmaker Robbin Rae and selected to be in both the Oakland International Film Festival, which just passed, and the upcoming San Francisco Black Film Festival. The cinematography, the lighting, the script, the acting and the message were all on point. Robbin Rae is a name we will hear more of, mark my words.

Now, as the San Francisco Bay View newspaper’s 40th birthday year comes to a close, is the time to bring up to date the historical sketch of our paper that I began with Part 1 in the January paper. Piles of old papers rest on my desk, waiting to be read once again – a banquet of stories and pictures of our lives, our hopes, our goals. Let me let you taste the flavor of the freedom we continue to fight for in the age of Trump.

On the second weekend of June this year, the San Francisco Black Film Festival will be celebrating its 19th year by screening over 100 independent Black films in this annual four-day cinema marathon. San Francisco Black Film Festival director Kali O’Ray, son of founder Ave Montague, sits down to discuss how it feels for the festival to celebrate its 19th birthday, the importance of indie films, remaining in a city that was once a lot more chocolate but has been gentrified to 3 percent Black – and more.

Trinidadian filmmakers Garth St. Clair and his wife, Natasha Nunez, are two of the many cinematic junkies who have traveled to San Francisco from far and wide to attend the 18th Annual San Francisco Black Film Festival, which is taking place at a number of theaters around the city this weekend. Their documentary, “Trafficked,” screens at the festival at the African American Art and Culture Complex in San Francisco on Sunday from 4 to 6 p.m.

This year at the San Francisco Black Film Festival, “Codigo Color, Memorias” is one of the internationally made jewels that will be exposing the Bay Area to the issue of colorism in Cuba. “Codigo Color, Memorias” will screen on Saturday, June 18, at the African American Art and Culture Complex. I sat down with the filmmaker, William Sabourin, for an exclusive Q&A about his informative and perfectly timed film. Check him out in his own words.

BlockReportRadio.com interviews the father of Gangsta Rap, Jalal “Lightening Rod” Nuriddin of the Last Poets, about his classic piece, “The Hustlers’ Convention.” He speaks all around the world, with some of his answers touching street knowledge, the history of the ‘60s poets, Rap history and more. “Hustlers’ Convention,” the documentary, screens Saturday, June 18, 6 p.m., at the African American Art and Culture Complex.

Parliament Funkadelic was the cultural symbol for Black music in the ‘70s – genre-bending, fun, cool, sexy, futuristic and political. Filmmaker Bobby Brown captured their epic history in his documentary “Tear the Roof Off the Mother,” screening Sunday, June 19, at the Boom Boom Room as a part of the San Francisco Black Film Festival. For a lineup of the films and events in this year’s festival, Thursday through Sunday, June 16-19, go to sfbff.org, and read about many of them here on sfbayview.com. Check out Bobby Brown as we discuss his film in this exclusive Q&A.

The San Francisco Black Film Festival joins with sponsor The Unity Group of Congregation Emanu-El on Saturday, June 18, 2 p.m., to screen Jeff Adachi’s film, “America Needs a Racial Facial,” at Congregation Emanu-El, 2 Lake St. in San Francisco. The film, a short documentary, will be followed by a panel discussion on “Implicit Bias and Racial Profiling.” The film will also screen on Sunday without a panel discussion at the African American Arts and Culture Complex.