Discussion & News
The Chronicle Interviews Nigel Redden, Spoleto Festival USA’s General Director
By Hakim Abdul-Ali This is Spoleto Festival USA’s forty-first year of operation, and I’ve been covering this gala seventeen day performing arts extravaganza for “The Charleston Chronicle” for almost twenty-eight-years now. I’ve met and interviewed some of the world’s greatest stars and performing artists, and it has been a delightful journalistic ride and an…
Read More2017 INDIE Grants Call for Submissions Now Open
The South Carolina Film Commission and Trident Technical College have announced a Call for Submissions for the 2017-2018 Indie Grants production funding cycle. As the only one of its kind in the nation, the production grant and training program offers incredible opportunities for the state and region’s top filmmakers and crew. “No one else in…
Read MoreBlack Spirit Group Targets Inequity in Concert Industry
Black Spirit Group (BSG), a professional organization comprised of African American entertainment promoters and businessmen, is poised to begin a national community awareness campaign to educate African American concert goers on their buying power and the inequities in the concert industry that prevent their spending from impacting their communities. Specifically, BSG will highlight the systemic discriminatory practices of…
Read More“ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards & Gala” Primetime Special to Air on OWN Sunday. March 5
The 10th anniversary of Time Inc.’s Essence “Black Women in Hollywood Awards,” will air as a primetime television event on Sunday, March 5 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on OWN. For the past decade, the star-studded celebration has been at the forefront of spotlighting Hollywood’s most creative and accomplished African-American female visionaries both in front of the camera…
Read MoreQ&A with Hidden Figures Director Theodore Melfi
By Edward Henderson (San Diego Voice and Viewpoint/NNPA Member) Imagine being in the running to direct the newest Spiderman film. What kind of script would have to cross your desk to make you drop out of consideration? For me, it would have to be something that moved my soul, told a story that has never…
Read MoreAngela Bassett the “Reel” Deal as the American Black Film Institute Pays her Tribute as the People’s Icon at their 2017 Oscar Week Gala
Academy Award nominated actress, Angela Bassett, will be honored with the “Reel Icon” award by the American Black Film Institute, at their annual “New, Next, Now Legend” Oscar Week gala for her iconic roles and career achievement as one of cinemas all-time favorite actors, in a poll conducted by American Black Film Institute. The event…
Read More21st Annual American Black Film Festival Announces 2017 Dates
The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) recently announced that the 21st annual event will be held in Miami, June 14-18, 2017. In addition to the best of Black film and TV, the five-day festival will offer an innovative program with new experiences, including The Byron Lewis Careers in Entertainment Center, a multi-day educational forum with…
Read MoreBrown Sugar – New Streaming Service for African Americans Featuring the Biggest Collection of the Baddest Movies – Launches
The biggest collection of the baddest African-American movies of all-time have a new subscription-video-on-demand streaming home as Brown Sugar launches today. Brown Sugar is now available for mobile phones and tablets in the Google Play Store and iTunes App Store and for computers at www.BrownSugar.com. There is a free initial trial period for subscribers with a retail…
Read MoreNew Report: People of Color With and Without Disabilities Absent from Film
Only 2.4 percent of all speaking or named characters in film were shown to have a disability in 2015 and none of the leading character were from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups, according to a new report by The Media, Diversity, & Social Change (MDSC) Initiative at USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Inequality in…
Read MoreThe American Black Film Festival to Launch “ABFF Creators Summit”
In Fall 2016, the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) will unveil the “ABFF Creators Summit” in Los Angeles, CA. Hosted by Creative Artists Agency (CAA), the one-day summit for a select group of writers, producers and directors will include award-winning filmmakers from the 2016 American Black Film Festival. The goal of this intensive program is…
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