This weekend the Brooklyn Academy of Music aka BAM will host the 3rd Annual New Voices in Black Cinema Film Festival. Presented by ActNow Foundation and BAMcinématek, it’s a weekend filled with over 35 full-length features and shorts, kicking off tonight at 9:45pm with the post-Iraq action flick Kill Hole. The goal of New Voices in Black Cinema is to showcase all the different stories that exist in both African American communities and the diaspora. As festival director, Curtis Ceasar John puts it, “There is no one African American experience, it’s varied and it’s wide.” Yet Okayplayers--from Saul Williams to Chuck D and stic.man of dead prez to dancehall star Aidonia--make there present felt throughout this Very Large Array of diasporic visions.
>>>Check Out The Full Festival Line-Up Here
>>>Purchase Tickets for New Voices in Black Cinema Festival here
And click through these pages for a breakdown of the films, including trailers and showtimes (if you're in Brooklyn).
Aujourd’hui (Tey)
Aujourd’hui (“today” in French) follows “Satché” (Saul Williams) on the last day of his life. Directed by Alain Gomis and shot in Senegal, Aujourd’hui is a visually beautiful film that draws attention to the relationships that make up our lives and the feelings that matter most. Saul, an African-American, says that the opportunity to portray Satché was “exactly what he was looking for as an actor.” He adds that while being able to live and film in Senegal may be “African American’s dream” he had to check his feelings about his ancestral links to the Motherland because as he says, “I wasn’t there to go through those emotions. I was there to portay a Senegalese man,” This is critically acclaimed Aujourd’hui’s New York premiere.
Aujourd’hui is showing on Saturday, February 16 at 6:00pm
Director Alain Gomis and Saul Williams will be on hand for a Q&A after the screening.
Diary Of A Decade
FunkJazzKafé was one of those musical events where magic happened. From 1994-2004 FunkJazzKafé was the place where Atlanta went to hear artists like Bilal, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, and Omar super early in their careers. Diary of a Decade chronicles the ten year run of FunkJazzKafé, influence on the local Atlanta music scene, and impact on shaping the national soul and hip hop scene. Narrated by Chuck D, the film shows FunkJazzKafé as a cultural movement that introduced attendees to visual artists, healthy eating, and alternative healing practices. dead prez’s stic.man, who attended FunkJazzKafé several times, praises Diary of a Decade as for how it captures the feel of being there. He explains that FunkJazzKafé’s existence was so important to the Atlanta music community because as hip hop in the city gained national attention, FunkJazzKafé created a space for “the creativity and the underdog status of artists in Atlanta.”
Diary of a Decade screens on Saturday, February 16, 2013 at 9:15.
FunkJazzKafé Founder and “Diary of a Decade” Director Jason Orr will be on hand for Q&A after the screening.
Keep clicking for trailers and times for more festival highlights
The Kill Hole
Showing on Friday, February 15th at 9:45pm.
High Chicago
Showing on Saturday, February 16th at 3pm.
Alaskaland
Showing on Sunday, February 17th at 4pm.
Gimme The Loot
Showing Monday, February 18th at 7pm.
You can purchase tickets for all the films in the New Voices in Black Cinema Festival here. Pass the popcorn.
