The Return of DK!

4 of the 5 original "Show Stoppers" are back. That's right, DANITY KANE HAS RETURNED, but with the exclusion of D.Wood AND Diddy. Dawn, Aubrey, Andrea, and Shannon made the official announcement Sunday night on the MTV VMA Pre Show. While on the red carpet, the ladies announced, "We're back," and that their new single, "Rage," will be coming "very soon." They said what they had already told the world through social media.

Many fans - myself included - had anticipated the return of Danity Kane, and while their return is HUGE news, we were hoping for a little more during the live telecast. Give us the date of the new release or upcoming tour dates perhaps; something more than what we already grasped from Twitter and Instagram.  Nevertheless, I'm ready for new DK music!

Lee Daniels' "The Butler" Premiere

The Butler had its Philadelphia premiere at The Kimmel Center on Monday July 29th. Directed by Lee Daniels and written by Danny Strong, the film tells the story of real-life White House Butler, Eugene Allen, who served through 8 presidencies. Not only is the storyline compelling as it parallels the African American experience in this country, but the cinematography is excellent. From the framing, set designs, and lighting to the music, editing, and costuming - it was all superb and appropriate. And I didn't even get to the acting yet! Check out this WDAS/Patty TV footage from the screening.

The talent amongst The Butler cast is incredible! It's undeniable! With Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey accompanying Daniels and Strong, Oscar nominations are sure to come. The film also stars Cuba Gooding Jr., David Oyelowo, Yaya Alafia, Lenny Kravitz, Jane Fonda, Robin Williams, Mariah Carey, David Banner,  Michael Rainey Jr., AND Jesse Williams. AND MORE! When you see this movie, you will laugh, you will cry, you're heart will hurt, and you'll leave the theater feeling uplifted. Lee Daniels and Danny Strong have succeeded in creating a great film!

The Butler is in theaters NOW and it is certainly a MUST-SEE!

Day 3: The BlackStar Film Festival

Saturday was another day in downtown Philly for The BlackStar Film Festival!

To start, I attended the "Black Women, Body Image, and Hollywood" panel. Drexel University's Dr. Yaba Blay of the Africana Studies Department moderated. Panelists included Michelle Trotter (Actress and Model), Ellen Domingos (Actress and Advocate), Stacey Sargeant (Actress, Producer, and Director), and Lisa Cortes (Director and Producer). Before the conversation began, the audience viewed Sargeant's short film Though I'm Not Perfect and Cortes' Imagine A Future, previously shown on BET.

From Left to Right: Dr. Yaba Blay, Michelle Trotter, Ellen Domingos, Stacey Sargeant, Lisa Cortes

Though I'm Not Perfect focuses on the impact that negative comments had on a particular dancer and her experience with an eating disorder as a result.

Imagine A Future takes a look at black beauty and one student's journey to discover herself and what makes her beautiful.

During the panel discussion, all sorts of topics came up - some included casting in Hollywood, eating disorders, and being a plus size model. One thing in particular that I took from this panel was that if the media does not affirm who I am, if they don't portray who I am or what my culture truly is, then I have to do it myself. I need to affirm that I am beautiful. I need to show others in my community that they are worthy. And through film, I plan to let my race know that they matter. If the media doesn't show who we really are as a people then it's my responsibility to my race as an aspiring filmmaker to do so. That's also the job of anyone else who wants to see accurate representations of African Americans on film. If you want to see it, make it happen. Whether you write, direct, edit, or act in a production that accurately portrays us or if you want to produce it - just help make it happen so that the little black boy or little black girl next to you doesn't have to say, "How come Bob [or Jane or Mariana] doesn't look like me or even talk like me?" I love my black folk and it's time we see more true, mirror reflections of who we are as a people.

That's not to say that we are all saints and that there aren't any African Americans who live sinful lives, but that comes with every race of people. However, we tend to see a more negatively highlighted portrayal of African Americans on screen than we do from our non-African-American counterparts.

Later in the evening, Nairobi Half Live was screened. In this film, directed by David Tosh Gitonga, an aspiring actor from Kenya, Mwas, ventures off to the city of Nairobi to hone his craft and pursue his career. He soon falls into the arms of a local gang. His new life in Nairobi forms into 2 - one living as a carjacking thief & the other preparing to act in an upcoming theater production. The 2 worlds eventually collide, and at an unfortunate cost.

With the current portrayals of African Americans in the media and entertainment itself and who our youth try to emulate, accurate representations are at an all time high.

The next blog post will take a look at day 4 of The BlackStar Film Festival and reflecting on the festival in its entirety!

#BlackStarFF Day 2

The start of the BlackStar Film Festival (Day 1) took a look at the current state of black film with the screening of Black Film Now. With that, festival participants discussed the limited representations and rare opportunities for the African American community in film.

When our presence isn't prevalent, we become irrelevant. When true depictions of African Americans are scarcely portrayed in the media, our stories, our identity, and our culture becomes insignificant to the masses. It's up to us to come together to support and create truthful representations of us on screen.

#BlackStarFF Day 2 served as a response to the previous day's insights. It began with a panel discussion titled "By Any Means Necessary: Producing Independent Film." The panel included remarks from Producer Nekisa Cooper, Nefertite Nguvu of Hollywood Africans, Spike Lee of 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, Lendl Tellington of HyLo Boutiques, and Dennis Dortch and Numa Perrier of Black&SexyTV. Writer Nzinga Kadalie Kemp served as the moderator.

Top (from left to right): Nekisa Cooper, Nefertite Nguvu, Spike Lee, Lendl Tellington, and Numa Perrier
Bottom: Spike Lee (Left) and Latifah Waddy (Right)

When asked why they produce, the majority of the panelists said it was to support black film, to bring many truthful and untold stories to the screen. It's not so much that they choose to produce, but they do it out of necessity. Again, when our presence isn't prevalent, we become irrelevant.

 In order to see OUR stories, we need producers, sponsors, donors - just overall financial support - from others and definitely from our own people.

Too often, individuals who set out to enter the film industry aspire to be on the creative end. They want to direct, write, shoot, act, etc. However, without the necessary financial backing and business background, how can you expect to see your project in production? Someone has to produce and put up the funding. Together, we can make it happen. WE can all take part in green-lighting the much needed positive, accurate, and heartwarming representations of us in the media through film.

Spike Lee himself is now using Kickstarter to seek funding for his next project. Critics wondered why a filmmaker as acclaimed as Lee turned to Kickstarter, a site normally associated with beginners seeking funding for a future project. This is what Lee had to say during the panel.

The second day of the festival also included a screening from Tanya Wright, works from youth filmmakers, and many more.

Tanya Wright (Left) and Latifah Waddy (Right) at The 2nd Annual BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia

You might remember Tanya Wright from her role as Theo Huxtable's girlfriend on The Cosby Show. Currently, Wright stars in HBO's True Blood and brought her new project Butterfly Rising to #BlackStarFF. A book and film, Butterfly Rising is the first transmedia project written by, directed by, and starring an African American female. It's an artistic, mythical, creative, and compelling look at family, fantasy, reality, love, grief, and more after two women hit the open road together. She did a remarkable job at presenting and dealing with each theme throughout the film's entirety.

The youth films presented topics such as the impact of the Philadelphia Public School closings, high school pushouts, the Stop and Frisk policy in New York, self empowerment, Seventeen magazine's claim of diversity, and more.

Youth Filmmakers

This festival has been uplifting and inspiring thus far. Thanks to BlackStar for showcasing all of this remarkable talent and fostering the necessary discussions here in Philadelphia. It is definitely helping to strengthen my passion, my plans, and my ideas.

Yet again, when our presence isn't prevalent, we become irrelevant. It's time for a revolution. I'm ready to take action through film. Are you?

The 2nd Annual BlackStar Film Festival Opens In Philadelphia

Yesterday's opening of The BlackStar Film Festival brought many compelling films to Philadelphia. Among them, Black Film Now addressed the current state of black film while Pull of Gravity brought to the forefront the issue of re-incarceration into the prison system.

"Black Film Now" Q&A Moderator Jos Duncan of BlackStar (Left)
& Mike Dennis of ReelBlack (Right)

I couldn't have thought of a better way to kick off the second installment of this festival than with the screening of Black Film Now.

In today's film industry there's limited opportunities for black filmmakers and actors, partly because there aren't enough of us at the corporate level of mainstream cinema to fund and approve these black films for production. So a lot of black filmmakers choose the independent route. We have to create our own stories, cast our own people, and distribute our films on our own if we want to see our people on screen more frequently.

Essentially, we do it all - film, edit, market, and distribute - for the sake of OUR stories.

"Pull of Gravity" Q&A Moderator Kamau Stanford (Left)
& Co-Directors Jon Kaufman (Middle) and El Sawyer (Right)

Pull of Gravity focuses on 3 men of color - Kev, Andy, and Co-Director El himself - who were previously incarcerated and their attempt to avoid re-entering the prison system. It's a common cycle in their environments to get a taste of the drug life, the selling life, get hooked, and the negativity just keeps pulling and pulling and pulling at you. Once arrested, 44% of ex-cons are re-arrested within one year. 67% will re-offend within three years. Follow along their journey as they try not to be yet another statistic. Another screening of Pull of Gravity is scheduled for September 25th at the International House of Philadelphia (37th and Chestnut Streets).

Rounding out the first day of the BlackStar Film Festival screenings was an open conversation about black male identity on film, Question Bridge: Black Males. Essentially what you have is a black man asking another black man a question which is then answered by other black males. As the audience laughed, cried, and cheered throughout this back-and-forth pop-up bridge-esq juxtaposition, this project fostered a dialogue between the black men on screen. Question Bridge is one of the many profound films of the festival that I recommend every person in the black community to see. This film should inspire other groups within our community to have this same kind of open dialogue. And I believe film is one of the effective vessels to do so.

Co-Directors Hank Willis Thomas (Far Left) and Bayete Ross Smith (Middle Left), Producer Nicole Fisher (Middle Right), & "Question Bridge: Black Males" and "From Man to Man" Q&A Moderator (Far Right)

During the Q&A, I learned that the filmmakers and artists are working on a more interactive web component to the project. I am looking forward to all of the possible future counterparts to Question Bridge: Black Males.

Not only were the editing and photographic pop-up style of the film superb and appropriate, but the knowledge was profound. One man in particular said something especially enlightening that hit home for many people in the audience, as I could tell from all the affirming "hmmmm's and uh-hun's." He said, "The one who knows how will always have a job, [but] the one who knows why will be the boss."

Then it hit me, there I was, attending my first film festival ever, sitting amongst these incredible independent filmmakers and film lovers. We weren't there to necessarily learn how to create films - although some can offer advice on this. We were there to ask that question of why. Why film? Why black film? Why do filmmakers create these films and why does the audience come out?

I'd like to expand on these questions and their various answers in a later post, but ultimately, it comes down to this: if no one else will paint our picture, we have to put the brush and canvas to use ourselves.