PIXELATING: INDIE FILMS IN BLACK

PIXELATING: INDIE FILMS IN BLACK

MoCADA and Black Public Media (BPM) present Pixelating: Indie Films in Black, a series of screenings held in the month of February in honor of Black History Month.

Screening throughout various venues in Brooklyn and New York City, this film series couples independently produced films with web series to promote and highlight emerging Black voices in film and television. Following each screening, join us for a discussion with the directors, producers, and players that make this series possible. All screenings are free and open to the public.

PIXELATING: Indie Films in Black is made possible by Media MVMT,  Black Public Media, Brooklyn Public Library, The Center for Place, Culture and Politics at CUNY Graduate Center, IFC Films, Zanta Media, Issa Rae Productions, South Oxford Space – A Project of A.R.T./New York, and Lambent Foundation.

SCHEDULE

DAY 1
Saturday, February 4 | 4:00 – 6:00pm
South Oxford Space, 138 South Oxford Street, Brooklyn

FEATURE: An Oversimplification of Her Beauty | Directed by Terence Nance

In An Oversimplification of Her Beauty, Terence Nance creates a multi-media film that puts you in the shoes of a quixotic young man, as fantasies, emotions, and memories, race through his mind during this singular moment in time. Selected for the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, this will be the New York premier.

*Image credit | Film still from An Oversimplification of Her Beauty

WEB SERIES: The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl | Created by Issa Rae

The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl follows the title character and friends as they navigate through life, love and awkward situations. With the catch phrase: “We’re all awkward in our own way; it’s natural,” this popular web series created by Issa Rae portrays life’s uncomfortable and challenging situations.

DAY 2

Thursday, February 10 | 6:30 – 8:30pm
CUNY Graduate Center, Martin E. Segal Theatre, 365 Fifth Avenue, NYC

FEATURE: Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin | Directed by Nancy D. Kates and Bennett Singer

This documentary reflects on the life of Bayard Rustin, master strategist and tireless activist, best remembered as the organizer of the 1963 March on Washington. Helping mold Martin Luther King, Jr. into an international peace symbol, he suffered backlash for being an openly gay man.

WEB SERIES: Mondo Black: “Black Queer & Beyond” | Produced by Gabriel Tolliver, BPM

Mondo Black gets up close and personal with Jomama Jones, “more diva starlet than drag queen”– and visits with award-winning poet, writer, performer and actress Pamela Sneed to discuss international activism, gender identification, and the written and spoken word.

DAY 3

Saturday, February 25 | 4:00 – 6:00pm
Brooklyn Public Library, Dweck Center, 10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn

FEATURE: Medicine for Melancholy | Directed by Barry Jenkins

This feature film is a love story of bikes and one-night stands told through two African-American twenty-somethings dealing with the conundrum of being a minority in a rapidly gentrifying San Francisco.

WEB SERIES: Habesha Life | Created by Ambessa Jir Berhe

Habesha Life is an episodic online short film series. The story is about social interactions of a group of young habesha/abesha (Ethiopian and Eritrean people) in and around the Washington, DC Metro Area.

Check out the film series trailer here created by Media MVMT

Pixelating: Indie Films in Black is one part of 5 curated experiences conceptualized by MoCADA’s Curatorial Fellows, Zemen Kidane, Isissa Komada-John, and Jabari Owens-Bailey. The film series is in conjunction with MoCADA’s current exhibition, Pixelating: Black in New Dimensions, on view at MoCADA from November 17, 2011 to February 25, 2012.

The National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) is dedicated to developing black digital authorship and distributing unique stories of the black experience in the new media age. Hena Ashraf of BPM co-curated this festival along with the support of NBPC staff. www.blackpublicmedia.org