TV Shows (Queen Sugar, Insecure, Claws) Among Highlights For ABFF 2017Posted by Wilson Morales
May 31, 2017
The 2017 American Black Film Festival(ABFF) will bring a star-studded lineup of today’s hottest Hollywood actors to Miami, June 14-18. Television and cable networks will premiere the new season of their popular shows, as well as introduce their new lineup of shows for the summer.
Along with the upcoming comedy Girls Trip as the opening night film and the Tupac biopic All Eyez On Me as the Closing Night film, as well as the Fox Searchlight film Step, among the shows being showcased are BET’s Tales, TV ONE’s When Love Kills and Downsized, FX Networks’ Snowfall, A & E’s Biggie: The Life of the Notorious B.I.G, TNT’s Claws, OWN’s Queen Sugar and HBO’s Insecure and The Defiant Ones. There will be a Q&A with the cast following each screening. All tickets are available for purchase at www.ABFF.com.
GIRLS TRIP – OPENING NIGHT FILM
Producer Will Packer (Ride Along and Think Like a Man franchises, Almost Christmas) presents the new comedy from director/producer Malcolm D. Lee (The Best Man franchise, Barbershop: The Next Cut).
When four lifelong friends—Regina Hall (Think Like a Man, The Best Man Holiday), Tiffany Haddish (Keanu, A Christmas Wedding), with Jada Pinkett Smith (Gotham, Bad Moms) andQueen Latifah (Star, Bessie)—travel to New Orleans for the annual Essence Festival, sisterhoods are rekindled, wild sides are rediscovered, and there’s enough dancing, drinking, brawling and romancing to make the Big Easy blush.
Larenz Tate (House of Lies), Kate Walsh (Private Practice), Mike Colter (Luke Cage) and Kofi Siriboe (Queen Sugar) co-star in the comedy directed from a screenplay by Black-ish creator Kenya Barris & screenwriter Tracy Oliver (Barbershop: The Next Cut), from a story by Erica Rivinoja (Trolls) and Barris & Oliver. James Lopez, head of motion pictures for Will Packer Productions, and Preston Holmes, executive produce.
STEP
Fox Searchlight Pictures is bringing down director and producer Amanda Lipitz’s inspiring documentary STEP, featuring Blessin Giraldo, Cori Grainger, Tayla Solomon, Gari McIntyre and Paula Dofat. The film will hit theaters on August 4.
STEP documents the senior year of a girls’ high-school step dance team against the background of inner-city Baltimore. Each student is trying to become the first in their families to attend college and striving to make their dancing a success against the backdrop of social unrest in the troubled city.
The production also received generous support from Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Baltimore Ravens. The film world premiered at the Sundance Film Festival to sold out screenings with show-stopping performances by the team, who were greatly supported by the local Park City community.
BET’S TALES
Murder Inc. founder Irv “Gotti” Lorenzo has teamed up with BET Networks to produce “Tales” is a scripted anthology series of “song stories” weaving classic and current hip-hop songs into visual narratives from the lyrics of some of hip-hop’s greatest hits.
The premiere episode recreates NWA’s “F*ck the Police”, which focuses on a controversial police shooting of a young boy that flips the biases and stereotypes of today’s society. And each week, the suspenseful stories reimagine the meaning of each original song and take viewers on an adventure into some of the stories that play inspiration to the most iconic hip-hop hits.
The rotating cast includes Woody McClain, Keith Powers, Boris Kodjoe, Jennifer Freeman, Elise Neal, MC Lyte, Lance Gross, Christian Robinson, Matthew Noszka, Chet Hanks, Clifton Powell, Michelle Hayden, Michelle Mitchenor, Lil Duval, DC Young Fly, Rico Ball and more help bring the music to life in the BET original series.
Created and executive produced by Irv “Gotti” Lorenzo and his Visionary Ideas production company, alongside producer Ron Robinson, writer/producer Joy Kecken and co-producers Darcell Lawrence, John Bryant and Sonny Lorenzo, “Tales” is set to premiere on BET on June 27, 2017.
TV ONE’s WHEN LOVE KILLS: THE FALICIA BLAKELY STORY
Inspired by an episode of TV One’s original series For My Man, this is the tragic story of Falicia Blakely (Lil Mama), a teen mom who grows up in the fast-lane. When she becomes an exotic dancer, she attracts the attention of local pimp and predator, Dino (Lance Gross). His empty promises of a life together turn Falicia into a pawn in his dangerous games; and she’s forced to prove her love for him at the expense of innocent lives.
Tami Roman (Basketball Wives, Belle’s), Floyd Mayweather, Jr., Big Freedia, and Lil Zane round out the cast. The movie also marks the directing debut of acclaimed actress Tasha Smith (For Better Or Worse, Empire).
The screenplay is executive produced and written by industry veteran Cas Sigers-Beedles, who previously wrote and executive produced the TV One movies Welcome to the Family and “Girlfriends Getaway” 1 &2.
TV One will premiere “When Love Kills: The Falicia Blakely Story” on Labor Day (Monday, September 4).
FX’S SNOWFALL
FX will bring to the festival Snowfall” – a drama series that hails from director John Singleton, and is inspired by the early days of the crack cocaine epidemic in Los Angeles in the early 1980s.
The 10-episode season of the one-hour drama is set against the infancy of the crack cocaine epidemic and its ultimate radical impact on the culture as we know it. The story follows numerous characters on a violent collision course, including: Franklin Saint (Damson Idris), young street entrepreneur on a quest for power; Gustavo Zapata (Sergio Peris-Mencheta), a Mexican wrestler caught up in a power struggle within a crime family; Teddy McDonald (Carter Hudson), a CIA operative running from a dark past who begins an off-book operation to fund the Nicaraguan Contras; and Luica Villanueva (Emily Rios), the self-possessed daughter of a Mexican crime lord.
Snowfall is Executive Produced by John Singleton, Dave Andron, Thomas Schlamme, Eric Amadio, Michael London, and Trevor Engelson. Andron will serve as showrunner.
The pilot episode was written by Singleton, Amadio and Andron, and directed by the Belgian directing team of Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (“Black”).
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC’S LA 92
Ferguson. Baltimore. Sanford. The Los Angeles riots may have taken place a quarter century ago but the nation continues to find itself in a cycle of heated discussion over racial oppression, police brutality and socioeconomic inequality.
Now, after 25 years, National Geographic Documentary Films presents LA 92, a riveting look back at the controversial Rodney King trial and subsequent protests, violence and looting of the city. Viewed from a multitude of vantage points through visceral and rarely seen archival footage, the film brings a fresh perspective to a pivotal moment that reverberates to this day.
Produced by Lightbox’s two-time Academy Award winner Simon Chinn (“Man on Wire”) and Emmy winner Jonathan Chinn (“American High”) with Academy Award-winning directors Dan Lindsay and TJ Martin (“Undefeated”), and featuring original music from Danny Bensi and Saunder Jurriaans (“OA,” “Enemy”).
TV ONE’s DOWNSIZED
TV One’s newest original movie, “Downsized” centers on Ebony (Parker) and Michael (Kodjoe), who were forced into a modern “shotgun” wedding after becoming teenaged parents, and putting their personal goals on hold in order to support their family.
Amazingly, the two high school sweethearts managed to overcome the odds and establish a seemingly ideal life for themselves but after years of professional success take a toll on Ebony and Michael, the family begins an unconventional adventure to restore the faith, hope, and trust that initially brought them together.
The film also Alexus Lapri Geier as Madison, Racquel Bianca John as Michelle, Isaiah John as Mike, Jr. and Tia Hendricks as Malaysia. “Downsized” is written by Michelle McKissick (2016 ABFF Screenplay Finalist 2016) and is directed by Rhonda Baraka. It is also produced for TV One by Swirl Films and is executive produced by Eric Tomosunas.
This TV One film will premiere at the American Black Film Festival (ABFF) Friday, June 16 at Miami’s Colony Theater and on TV One in August.
HBO’s THE DEFIANT ONES
Set amid many of the defining events of the past four decades, this four-part documentary event tells the stories of Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine, their improbable partnership and their leading roles in a series of transformative events in contemporary culture.
Directed by Allen Hughes (“Menace II Society”), who conducted extensive interviews with both men, the show also includes interviews with such music icons as Bono, David Geffen, Eminem, Nas, Stevie Nicks, Ice Cube, Gwen Stefani, Jon Landau, Tom Petty, Trent Reznor, Snoop Dogg, Bruce Springsteen, Diddy and will.i.am. THE DEFIANT ONES also features never-before-seen footage from a multitude of recording and writing sessions with Eazy-E, JJ Fad, Stevie Nicks, N.W.A., Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and U2, among others.
“THE DEFIANT ONES is about the American Dream. How two men built an unconventional business in a conventional world. How they reinvented not only a business model, but themselves in the process. THE DEFIANT ONES is about two men who found friendship in an industry that frowns on the word, with personal tragedy and professional strife giving way to redemption as they tackled changing times to find relevance, enduring a rollercoaster ride as they travelled on a journey few could survive.” – Allen Hughes
The Defiant Ones will debut SUNDAY, JULY 9 at 9:00 p.m. (ET/PT)
A & E Networks’s BIGGIE: THE LIFE OF NOTORIOUS B.I.G
A&E Network will showcase the definitive documentary “Biggie: The Life of Notorious B.I.G.,” a three-hour, deeply personal biography will allow the late Christopher Wallace to narrate his own incredible life story by employing exclusive archival footage and audio recordings that have never been heard before as well as new interviews by those who loved him most.
Directed by Mark Ford, “Biggie: The Life of Notorious B.I.G.” is the first biography to be authorized by his estate and will be the most personal and revealing documentary about the late Christopher Wallace that anyone has ever seen. It will provide interviews with those closest to him including his widow Faith Evans, his mother Voletta Wallace, his close friend Lil Cease and members of Junior Mafia as well as cultural icons Sean “Diddy” Combs, Shawn “Jay Z” Carter and Nas. Twenty years after his death, this intimate documentary will also focus on Faith Evans as she embarks on an emotional journey to reconcile her own turbulent memories. In addition, the special will explore the people and places that shaped his life including his youth hustling on the streets of Brooklyn, NY, his rise to fame with his confidante and collaborator Sean “Diddy” Combs, his relationships with Faith Evans and Lil’ Kim, his feud with Tupac Shakur, and his shocking murder on the streets of Los Angeles.
“Biggie: The Life of Notorious B.I.G.” is directed by Mark Ford and produced by Creature Films in association with Entertainment One (eOne). Executive producers for Creatures Films are Mark Ford and Kevin Lopez. Executive Producers for eOne are John Morayniss and Tara Long. Voletta Wallace and Faith Evans also serve as executive producers. Executive producers for A&E are Elaine Frontain Bryant, Shelly Tatro and Brad Abramson. A+E Networks holds worldwide distribution rights for “Biggie: The Life of Notorious B.I.G.”
TNT’s CLAWS
Described as a “midnight-dark, wickedly funny meditation on female badness set in a South Florida nail salon,” “CLAWS” follows the rise of five diverse and treacherous manicurists working at the Nail Artisan of Manatee County salon, where there is a lot more going on than silk wraps and pedicures.
Niecy Nash, Carrie Preston, Harold Perrineau, Jenn Lyon, Judy Reyes, Karrueche Tran, Jason Antoon, Kevin Rankin, Jack Kesy and Dean Norris star in the hour-long dramedy.
At the center is salon owner Desna (played by Niecy Nash), who lives with and cares for her mentally ill twin brother, Dean (played by Harold Perrineau). Desna’s staff includes best friend Jennifer (Jenn Lyon), a tenuously sober ex-party girl raising two children from previous relationships; Quiet Ann (Judy Reyes), Desna’s enigmatic driver who also provides security for the salon; Polly (Carrie Preston), a mild-mannered preppy who recently served time in prison for identity theft; and Virginia (Karrueche Tran), who makes no effort to hide her boredom and impatience with her job.
Adding chaos to the Nail Artisan mix is Roller (Jack Kesy), a gangstered-out redneck who runs a barely legal pain clinic and uses Desna’s nail salon to launder their obscene profits; Bryce (Kevin Rankin), Jennifer’s husband who is also newly sober and trying to stay legit by working as an abundance coach; Dr. Ken Brickman (Jason Antoon), a bona fide doctor at a decidedly un-bona fide drug clinic; and Uncle Daddy (Dean Norris), a dangerous Dixie Mafia crime boss who is deeply Catholic and actively bisexual.
OWN’s QUEEN SUGAR
OWN is bringing its acclaimed drama series “Queen Sugar,” which was created by Ava DuVernay who also executive produces with Oprah Winfrey.
Based on the book by Natalie Baszile, Queen Sugar chronicles the lives and loves of the estranged Bordelon siblings in Saint Josephine, Louisiana – Nova (Rutina Wesley), a world-wise journalist and activist; Charley (Dawn-Lyen Gardner), the savvy wife and manager of a professional basketball star; and Ralph Angel (Kofi Siriboe), a formerly incarcerated young father in search of redemption.
The cast also includes Tina Lifford, Omar J. Dorsey, Dondré T. Whitfield, Timon Kyle Durrett, Nicholas L. Ashe and Ethan Hutchison. As well as Winfrey and DuVernay, Monica Macer is also an EP on the Warner Horizon Scripted Television produced series.
Queen Sugar will premiere season 2 on the OWN network with a two-night event, launching on June 20 and June 21, at 10 p.m. on both nights.
HBO’s INSECURE
HBO will premiere the first episode to Season 2 of it series, Insecure, created by Issa Rae and Larry Wilmore
Starring Issa Rae, Yvonne Orji, Jay Ellis and Lisa Joyce, the series follows the friendship of two black women as they deal with their own real-life flaws while attempting to navigate different worlds and cope with an endless series of uncomfortable everyday experiences.
For season 2 Amanda Seales and Natasha Rothwell, who are members of Issa’s crew, were promoted to regular status.
Executive produced by Issa Rae, Prentice Penny, Melina Matsoukas, Michael Rotenberg, Dave Becky and Jonathan Berry. Larry Wilmore serves as a consultant.
INSECURE returns for its eight-episode second season SUNDAY, JULY 23 (10:30-11:00 p.m. ET/PT).
ALL EYEZ ON ME
All Eyez On Me, from director Benny Boom, will close the festival on Saturday, June 17th. The closing night film is presented by Lionsgate, Codeblack Films and Morgan Creek Productions.
All Eyez On Me tells the true and untold story of prolific rapper, actor, poet and activist Tupac Shakur. The film follows Shakur from his early days in New York City to his evolution into being one of the world’s most recognized and influential voices, before his untimely death at the age of 25. Against all odds, Shakur’s raw talent, powerful lyrics and revolutionary mind-set propelled him into becoming a cultural icon whose legacy continues to grow long after his passing.
The film stars Kat Graham (Vampire Diaries, Addicted), Lauren Cohan (Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice), Hill Harper (CSI: NY, Covert Affairs), Jamal Woolard (Notorious), Danai Gurira (Black Panther, The Walking Dead), Jamie Hector (The Wire, Paid in Full), Cory Hardrict (American Sniper, Destined) and Demetrius Shipp Jr. (#unlock’d) as Tupac Shakur. The producers are LT Hutton, Wayne Morris, David Robinson, and James G. Robinson.
