Archive for the ‘list’ Category
Summer Art Festivals
July 14, 2010
January is Here…
January 10, 2010It’s been a while since I had time to sit and give this blog the attention it deserves. But here are a few things that are going on:
- Split This Rock Poetry Festival is hosting a fundraiser on Jan. 18th. R. Dwayne Betts will be headlining the event along with the DC Youth Slam Team. Hope to see you there.
- I’ll be reading poems at Bus Boys at 14th and V on Sunday, January 17th at 4pm. This will mark the fourth year of the Sunday Kind of Love reading series. The cast are all twenty-something DC area poets. I’m delighted to be reading with Danielle Evennou and Adam Pellegrini.
- This month also marks the release of the new anthology of DC Poetry: Full Moon on K Street edited by Kim Roberts. I’m very honored to be a part of this anthology of such distinguished writers. I believe I’m the youngest poet listed in the anthology as the content is in chronological order by birth year.
- The Hurston/Wright Foundation will be hosting a very special event on Friday, January 15th at 6:30 pm at the Charles Sumner School. It will be a discussion of MLK’s landmark speeches and their relevance for today.
- Finally, I joined a writing group today. I was suspicious of writing groups for a long time but I’ll keep you posted on my progress. (I won’t be focusing on poetry in the group; Instead, I’ll be flexing my muscles at nonfiction and fiction.)
What I consider “Good” and “Essential” Black Films
December 7, 2009
In my post about the film Precious, I said that contemporary black cinema was/is lacking. Of course the causes for this are many. For one, in the United States commerce comes before art so a lot of films targeting black audiences are often comedies rather than serious dramas. Not to mention less polished screenplays (this is my opinion!) Also we cannot ignore the long history of racism that pervades the Arts in the US. If black Americans were featured in comparable situations to white actors then the idea that we’re equal or even human wouldn’t be so hard to believe. The other thing is that black moviegoers, even middle- and upper- income black moviegoers, tend not to support what you would consider “artsy” films for a number of social and cultural reasons. They’d be right next to you at a Tyler Perry opening. And, I’m not criticizing this. There simply aren’t enough options for black audiences or those who enjoy black cinema. There’s should be a critical study of this.
One of my readers left a comment asking “well, what would you consider a “good” black film according to your criteria?” I’m very grateful for this question as I don’t get to think in terms very often.
So for whatever’s it’s worth, here are some films I believe to be not only good but fresh, important, essential for those who care about film and how black stories are adapted for the silver screen. (Big ups to all my friends who sent me names of movies, participating in this conversation)
As an aside, I’ve joined forces with an amazing team, consisting of a magazine editor, a filmmaker to create an online magazine, dedicated to promoting and critically discussing independent black films. (This will be a future post.)
These are all films I’ve either seen or want to see and got a recommendation for. Feel free to take me to task on any of these films or ones that were omitted.
Daughters of the Dust
The Color Purple
A Lesson Before Dying
When the Levees Broke
Trouble the Water
I am Ali
Sankofa
School Daze
Miracle at St. Ann
Crooklyn
Love Jones
Inkwell
Claudine
Cooley High
Cornbread, Earl, and Me
Something the Lord Made
Glory
Roots
Mama Flora’s Family
The Great Debators
Miss Jane Pittman
Women of Brewster Place
Black Girl
Eve’s Bayou
Their Eyes Were Watching God
The Wedding
Malcolm X
Lackawanna Blues
Idlewild
Follow Me Home
Dead Presidents
She Hate Me
Love Jones
I’m Gonna Get You Sucka
Coming to America
Boomerang
Harlem Nights
Be Kind Rewind
The Wiz
Feast of All Saints
Boyz n the Hood
The Josephine Baker Story
She’s Gotta Have It
Do the Right Thing
Bamboozled
In appreciation suggestions made by Kupdena Auset, Michael Wilson, Tzynia L. Pinchback, Angela Koi, Angela Watkins, Asha Bandele, and Juan Gaddis via Facebook.
Some Things I Did When I Wasn’t Blogging
November 30, 2009
- -I had Thanksgiving dinner for the first time at a buffet. It was lots of fun. No dishes. Same food. Easy to clean-up.
-My Dad took the bus from NYC to be with me and his granddaughter. It was an interesting experience. Some fatherhood posts are forthcoming.
-On my weekly trip to the library I picked up a couple of books that I read before (Naomi Shihab Nye’s You & Yours, and Lucille Clifton’s Voices) I think re-reading is so absolutely necessary. I think the meaning becomes clearer and strikes different chords on the second round, and third, fourth, etc.
-I thought a lot about writing. Writing poems. Shaking the dust off a couple of essays I have rattling in my head which reminds me, I haven’t gotten paid for a piece I did for a local newspaper. I need to make a phone call tomorrow.
-I’ve been working on my grad school applications: requesting recommendation letters, slapping a few poems around like I’m a bad mama jamama (shut yo mouth) I’m really excited that I’ll only have to pay one application fee: compliments of being a Ronald E. McNair Scholar.
-I watched the movie Hairspray with my daughter; It was set in Baltimore and since she’s a native of Baltimore it was interesting, though the film is set in the 1960s. I’m a huge fan of Queen Latifah and found the flick entertaining. Though, I couldn’t figure out why John Trovolta played a female character…? We also watched the beginning of Miss Jane Pittman. It’s hard to watch these films with children in the room. Kayla wants to know…why doesn’t the girl have shoes? Because she’s a slave. What’s a slave?
- I had a wonderful show last Monday on my radio show, Poet’s Corner. I have a new host, poet Carolyn Joyner, and we discussed political poems. We got quite a few calls. It’s a topic I’d like to explore more as it’s not discussed in a way that I find satisfying.
- I have yet to see the film Precious. I absolutely have to see it not so much because I think I’ll enjoy it but because I’m a culture critic; it’s my job to the a watchdog of sorts for black cinema.
-And finally, I’m looking for film enthusiasts. I’m a part of a team starting an online publication dedicated to black independent film. We could really use some interns, and film enthusiasts who don’t mine donating an article pro bono.
