African American Cinema - KOLUMN Magazine

First Look at Spike Lee’s Da 5 Bloods | Vanity Fair

May 15, 2020May 15, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

The Oscar winner on his Vietnam War drama: “I’m not being disrespectful to any Vietnam film…except maybe The Green Berets with John Wayne.” Five young African American soldiers are listening to the radio in the jungle of Vietnam when they learn that one of their bravest has died—Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., felled not by a Vietcong […]

Niles Fitch To Play First Black Live-Action Disney Prince | Essence

April 23, 2020April 23, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

The rising star is set to play a young prince in Disney+’s “Secret Society of Second-Born Royals.” Niles Fitch is lending his dazzling smile to Disney. The This Is Us star will play the first Black live-action prince in Disney history. According to Entertainment Weekly, Fitch will be playing Tuma, a “charismatic and self-centered” young prince in the Secret […]

Black Cinema at Its Birth | Criterion

April 4, 2020April 4, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

American cinema is over 125 years old, and African Americans have been a part of it from the beginning. This participation has often been fraught, stymied, and curtailed, but the desire to use motion pictures to craft a self-image has motivated African American filmmakers and performers since the medium’s emergence. At last a fuller picture […]

He Was ‘Star Wars’ ‘ Secret Weapon, So Why Was He Forgotten? | The Hollywood Reporter

February 10, 2020February 10, 2020African American Cinema

Ashley Boone Jr., the first black president of a major Hollywood studio, helped make George Lucas’ quirky space opera a hit in the 1970’s — yet chances are you’ve never heard of him: “He was way ahead of his time.” [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] When thousands gathered Dec. 16 in Hollywood for the world premiere of Star […]

How Reginald Hudlin’s creative risk-taking has shaped black—and pop—culture | Fast Company

February 5, 2020February 5, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

Digging into Reginald Hudlin’s résumé is like the most inspiring rabbit hole you could possibly tumble down. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] Most people know Hudlin as the director of such classic ’90s films as House Party and Boomerang. And while he’s been consistent on the directing front, most recently with his Netflix doc The Black Godfather, about […]

Cicely Tyson Is Giving Advice We All Need In New ‘Cherish The Day’ Trailer | Essence

January 27, 2020January 27, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

Cecily Tyson doesn’t let up. After popping up in Tyler Perry’s new Netflix film, A Fall From Grace, premiering Friday, the 95-year-old actress’ new role is in Ava DuVernay’s new romantic drama, Cherish The Day.. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] The very first trailer for the OWN series, which premieres next month, was released Thursday and is getting […]

‘Cane River’: A Forgotten Black Director’s Only Film Resurfaces After Being Lost for 40 years | IndieWire

January 23, 2020January 23, 2020African American Cinema, African American Entertainment ...

Oscilloscope Laboratories has acquired the restored film for a theatrical run to begin in February. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] Debuting in 1982, “Cane River” was an independent-film curio: a race and colorism-themed love story with an all-black cast, written and directed by a black filmmaker, financed by wealthy black backers. The filmmaker’s name was Horace B. Jenkins, […]

Matthew Cherry’s ‘Hair Love’ Receives Well Deserved Oscar Nomination | Because of Them We Can

January 14, 2020January 14, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

Hair Love, the popular children’s book turned animated short by former NFL player, Matthew Cherry, gets nominated for an Oscar, USA Today reports. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] We first wrote about Cherry and his budding animated short in 2017. The NFL player turned filmmaker was on a mission to highlight the relationship between Black fathers and daughters […]

DGA Award Nominations Acknowledge Existence of Female Directors | Vulture

January 9, 2020January 9, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film

The Directors Guild of America has announced its nominees for Best Feature Film Director of 2019, and many of them are women — or at least many of them in the First-Time Feature Film Director category are women. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] Atlantics’ Mati Diop, Honey Boy’s Alma Har’el, and Queen & Slim’s Melina Matsoukas all received […]

Reading ‘Us’ Through Its T-shirts | The New York Times

January 4, 2020January 4, 2020African American Cinema, African American Film ...

With its star, Lupita Nyong’o, in awards contention this season, a look at the clothes that helped tell the story. [mc4wp_form id=”6042″] You could watch Jordan Peele’s “Us” a dozen times and still not catch all of the symbolism, references and ideas tucked in it. Yes, scissors are clearly a thing, but what’s with that […]