New Voices in Black Cinema 2017 Preview – Begins April 26–30Posted by Wilson Morales
April 25, 2017
BAMcinématek and ActNow Arts present the seventh annual New Voices in Black Cinema, April 26–30
This year’s line-up features three New York premieres and Sundance favorite Quest. The Wall Street Journal is the title sponsor for BAMcinématek and BAM Rose Cinemas.
From Wednesday, April 26 through Sunday, April 30, BAMcinématek presents the seventh New Voices in Black Cinema festival. Reflecting the wide spectrum of views and themes within African diaspora communities in the United States and beyond, the series includes nine feature length films and two shorts programs. New Voices in Black Cinema, one of a variety of ActNow programs presented in partnership with BAMcinématek since 2009, provides a showcase for new and established voices in black independent cinema.
The series begins on Wednesday, April 26 with Burning Sands (2017—April 26), the feature filmmaking debut of Gerard McMurray. The film follows a freshman fraternity pledge’s descent into the violence of underground hazing. 9 Rides (2016—Apr 26 & 29), the first feature to be shot entirely on an iPhone 6, is the second feature by director Matthew A. Cherry, and follows an Uber driver as he traverses Los Angeles on the busiest night of the year. Steps (2016—Apr 27), by co-directors Rock Davis and Jay Rodriguez Jr., becomes a story about forgiveness when a man working as a home health worker is assigned to care for the gang member who shot him years before. On Apr 29 and 30 we also feature two shorts programs.
Looking outside of the United States, director Jean-Claude Flamand-Barny’s Gangs of the French Caribbean (2016—Apr 28 & 30) is set in 1970s France. The thriller is a hard-nosed look at the West Indian immigrant experience in France. Perivi Katjavivi’s The Unseen (2016—Apr 28) follows three characters searching for meaning in Namibia, a country also in search of an identity after years of colonization and apartheid; screens with short film The Suit. British-Nigerian director, Joseph A. Adesunloye’s debut feature White Colour Black (2016—Apr 28) follows Leke, a London photographer, who, after his father becomes ill and passes away, returns to Senegal and rediscovers his Senegalese culture.
Three documentaries are featured in this year’s series: director Daphne McWilliams’s In a Perfect World (2016—Apr 30) is an intimate, and at times personal, exploration of the dynamics of sons raised by single mothers. In Quest (2017—Apr 27 & 29), director Jonathan Olshefski captures the life of a Philadelphia based African-American family across the eight years of Barack Obama’s presidency. Lastly, Blaxploitalian (2016— Apr 29) sheds much needed light on the experiences of Afro-Italian and African diasporic actors in Italian cinema; it screens with short film The Gospel.
Film Descriptions
THE GOSPEL Dir. A.V. Rockwell. Four slice-of-life segments depicting Alicia Keys coming of age experience in New York City. 21min. Sat, Apr 29 at 2pm *Screens with Blaxploitalian.
After a robbery and shooting that almost claimed his life, Brian Coleman survives into a life of hardship – turning to alcohol as his escape. Losing his family and living on the streets, a desperate Brian manages to secure a job as a home health worker, only to find himself assigned to help a paralyzed gang member – the man that shot him all those years before. Desperate to rebuild his life he must confront his patient and start towards a true recovery. 110min. Thu, Apr 27 at 9:30pm
African-American actor Marcus, cast as a historical leader of Namibia, embarks on earnest research to unveil the true history of his character. Anu, a talented local musician, has trouble negotiating between influences and identity. Sara is a depressed young woman uncertain that there’s anything worth living for.
his father becomes ill and suddenly dies, Leke makes the journey back to bury his father and to rediscover a culture he has long forgotten. This debut feature is a subtle and striking look at identity and
