A Study of African American Cinema through Comprehensive Documentation
Welcome to our platform, where we aim to provide comprehensive documentation and historical context for African American cinematic productions. Through film histories, filmographies, analyses, video essays, and scholar interviews, we offer a narrative-driven resource that combines historical timelines with theoretical discussions and artist conversations. Our platform highlights the significant cinematic and scholarly developments of the 1980s and 1990s, showcasing the emergence of African American Cinema Studies and its impact on film, television, academia, and activism during this pivotal era.
Blog
Discover how African American cinema has influenced culture, activism, and representation. Explore the lesser-known independent films that have shaped African American cinema.
Halie Gerima – Child of Resistance
Children of Resistance It might be customary to talk about an artwork or an artist, by beginning with a critique of what she or he didn’t do. It might be useful to point out that Marlon Riggs’s video Black Is, Black Ain’t often takes aim at fairly easy, predictable...
Edward Bland – Cry of Jazz
Cry of Jazz It might be customary to talk about an artwork or an artist, by beginning with a critique of what she or he didn’t do. It might be useful to point out that Marlon Riggs’s video Black Is, Black Ain’t often takes aim at fairly easy, predictable targets, like...
Andrew Dosunmu – Mother of George
Mother of George It might be customary to talk about an artwork or an artist, by beginning with a critique of what she or he didn’t do. It might be useful to point out that Marlon Riggs’s video Black Is, Black Ain’t often takes aim at fairly easy, predictable targets,...
Spotlight Essays
Through in-depth analyses, gain insights into the themes, techniques, and cultural significance of African American films. You will also learn about the historical milestones and transformative moments in African American cinema.
Black Is White Mask
Black Is, Black Ain’t by Marlon Riggs It might be customary to talk about an artwork or an artist, by beginning with a critique of what she or he didn’t do. It might be useful to point out that Marlon Riggs’s video Black Is, Black Ain’t often takes aim at fairly easy,...
Julie Dash – Daughters of the Dust
In 1991, Julie Dash's Daughters of the Dust arrived as a landmark work of Black independent cinema, tracing the Peazant family's final day on the Sea Islands before their migration north. Shot with a painterly attention to Gullah Geechee custom and language, the film...
Julie Dash – Relatives
Relatives It might be customary to talk about an artwork or an artist, by beginning with a critique of what she or he didn’t do. It might be useful to point out that Marlon Riggs’s video Black Is, Black Ain’t often takes aim at fairly easy, predictable targets, like...
Spotlight: 1980s–1990s and The Birth of African American Cinema Studies
Explore the major cinematic and scholarly developments of the 1980s and 1990s, a pivotal era that shaped African American cinema. Discover how these developments influenced film, television, academia, and activism, and gain a deeper understanding of the impact they had on the industry.
Black Is White Mask
Marlon Riggs’s video Black Is, Black Ain’t takes aim at fairly easy, predictable targets, from Minister Louis Farrakhan to simplified, extreme nationalist positions—interrogating what it means to define Blackness.
Julie Dash – Daughters of the Dust
In 1991, Julie Dash’s Daughters of the Dust arrived as a landmark work of Black independent cinema, tracing the Peazant family’s final day on the Sea Islands before their migration north.
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