Texas Black Film Festival Through Feb. 7

Details

Parent Category: Film Festivals

Category: Previews

Published on Tuesday, 02 February 2010 19:04

Written by Tony Cohen

The Texas Black Film Festival, in Dallas, Texas, screens for its fourth year Wednesday, February 3, to Sunday, February 6, with a host of movies designed to showcase the Lone Star State's film-industry resources and works that express the African-American experience, as well as to provide filmmakers with networking and opportunities to sharpen marketing and production skills through workshops.

Based at the Studio Movie Grill, a much-written-about Dallas staple where moviegoers can indulge in a full-menu dinner while watching a new Hollywood release, the family-friendly festival will as well screen "best of" events at future dates at the Alamo Draft House in Austin, Texas, and the Studio Movie Grill Copperfield, in northwest Houston.

Wednesday's premiere-night event features the esteemed actor Giancarlo Esposito, of Spike's Lee's Do the Right Thing, Mo' Better Blues, School Daze and Malcolm X, and the star of the cult-classic seriocomedy Bakersfield P.D.

The festival will also present awards in the Feature Film, Short Film, Animation, Documentary and Texas Film categories, and for Actor, Actress and Director.

Film categories are screened in two-hour blocks, with each block ticketed as an $8 event. Day passes for Thursday to Friday are $25; a three-day pass is $60. The official hotel is the  Radisson Central, which offers a TBFF Special room rate of $75 plus tax.

See the next page for the film schedule >>

Studio Movie Grill
11170 N. Central Expressway
(Royal Lane & 75 Central Expressway)
Dallas, Texas 75243
(214) 361-2966

Radisson Central
6060 N. Central Expressway
Dallas, Texas 75206
(800) 333-3333
(214) 750-6060

Festival Web site: http://www.texasblackfilmfestival.com/index.html

FEATURES

Bilal's Stand
dir. by Sultan Sharrief (Ann Arbor, MI) TEXAS PREMIERE
INSPIRATIONAL DRAMA. After secretly submitting a college application, and taking up
the art of ice carving in order to win a scholarship, Bilal is forced to decide 
whether he will continue working at the family cab stand. (FRI- Noon)

Disowning Claire
dir. by A.C. Abbott (Dallas, TX) WORLD PREMIERE
ROMANTIC COMEDY. Shot in Dallas. This suburban WF admits to her family that she prefers black men. (THUR- 10PM)

Dream Mali
dir. by Barbara Kowa (Berlin)
U.S. PREMIERE. ART DOCUMENTARY. Digital multi-cultural film project. If art is a universal language, is it possible to use it to communicate with people of totally different social, religious, educational and cultural backgrounds? Two visual and performing artists from Berlin travel to remote villages in Mali – where people speak only Bambara. An artistic exploration of social similarities and economic disparities. Multilingual: German, English, French and Bambara with English subtitles. (FRI 2:00) (83 mins)

Frederick Douglass and the White Negro
dir. by John J Doherty (Dublin, Ireland). U.S. PREMIERE. HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARY. Produced in Ireland, this documentary discusses Frederick Douglas’ visit to Ireland and the mutual impact the two had on each other. (SAT- Noon)

Grown in Detroit: Teen Moms become Urban Farmers
dir. by Mascha Poppenk, Manfred Poppenk (Netherlands).
DOCUMENTARY. DALLAS PREMIERE. Just imagine... Teen moms becoming urban farmers. Utopia? Not in Detroit. Nature is taking over the city and the new generation is taught to harvest its profit. (THUR- 2PM)

Neshoba
dir. by Micki Dickoff (Los Angeles, CA) & Tony Pagano (South Salem, NY)
HISTORICAL DOCUMENTARY. a Mississippi town still divided about the meaning of justice, 40 years after the murders of civil rights workers, James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner, an event drmatized in the Oscar-winning film, Mississippi Burning. (FRI- 2PM)

Sweet Justice
dir. by Kelly Grey (Dallas, TX) COMEDY. Shot in Dallas. Child support detectives on the job. (FRI- 10AM)

The Good Fight: James Farmer Remembers the Civil Rights Movement
dir. by Jessica Schoenbaechler (Dallas, TX). BIO-DOCUMENTARY. Chronicle of Farmer’s life from his earliest days as a "Great Debater" at Wiley College to his legacy teaching a new generation of students about the movement that shaped a country. (THUR- 4PM)

Unequal
dir. by John White (Compton, CA)
CHRISTIAN ROMANCE COMEDY. After learning of a "church girl" (Candace) who's "saving herself for marriage,"  a playboy (Urban) decides to pursue her in order to become her "first." (FRI-8PM).

SHORT FILMS

A Voice of the People
dir. by LaDonna Castro (Dallas, TX)
BIO-DOCUMENTARY. The story of Norma Adams-Wade, the first full-time African-American staff writer for the Dallas Morning News.

All Out
dir. by O'Shea" Myles (Long Beach, CA)
WORLD PREMIERE. DRAMA. After catching their daughter with a man, two lesbian parents come to terms with their daughter’s heterosexuality. (FRI- 10PM)

Always With You
dir. by Troy warwell (CA)
TEXAS PREMIERE.  DRAMA. A man is left by his wife after his neglect causes their 4-year-old son to be involved in a fatal accident. (SAT-4PM)

Asbury Park
dir. by Robert Andersen (Jersey City, NJ) TEXAS PREMIERE.
DRAMA. A young man returns to his hometown seeking redemption and forgiveness for the wrongs of his past. While his mother greets his return happily, he must struggle to rebuild his relationship with his brother, just as the town around him struggles to rebuild itself. (FRI-10PM)

Change
dir. by Jay Rodriguez (Jackson, NJ)
WORLD PREMIERE. DRAMA. A film reflecting upon the point of view of young and deprived individuals. Becoming a product of their environment is an all too common experience but it's not something that is etched in stone. (SAT-6PM)

Changing
dir. by Lela Bell (Plano, TX)
WORLD PREMIERE. DRAMA. Scott and Aliza Holt relocate to Texas in 1983, and discover that being an interracial family in the South is an added battle they didn't expect. (FRI-4PM).

Empty Space
dir. by Rob Underhill (Raleigh, NC,) TEXAS PREMIERE.
DRAMA. Every morning Mike wakes like this. Soon after, the voices in his mind wake too. Vivid recollections, situations, and each scene he acts out on a bare stage. (FRI-6PM)

Forgive Us Our Transgressions
dir. by Walter Richardson (Los Angeles, CA)
WORLD PREMIERE.
DRAMA. FORGIVENESS. 20-year-old African-American college student who’s haunted by the lynching of a relative in the South and has to choose between moving forward or avenging the unpunished crime when he has the opportunity to confront the perpetrator who is responsible. (SAT-4PM)

Free Meal
dir. by Evita Castine (Los Angeles, CA)   TEXAS PREMIERE.
COMEDY/ DRAMA. Andre Cox thinks that with his high school graduation approaching life is going to get easier for him in inner-city Los Angeles, but his older sister has other plans. (SAT-4PM)

Go Getta!
dir. by Sean Phillips (Houston, TX) WORLD PREMIERE.
DRAMA/ COMEDY. Beautiful young professional female has led a partying life, and anxiously awaits the results of an HIV test. (FRI-4PM)

Grace
dir. by Steven Mondesir (Irvington, NJ) WORLD PREMIERE.
DRAMA. After helping an old girlfriend in desperate need, young man is forced to recall a painful past. (SAT 6PM)

In Retrospect...
dir. by Logan Coles (Brooklyn, NY) WORLD PREMIERE. DRAMA. Unexpected passing of young woman forces an uncomfortable reunion between her estranged jazz-been husband and her emotionally detached daughter. (FRI-10PM)

Jitters
dir. by Jason S. Williams (Winter Parl, FL) WORLD PREMIERE.
DRAMA. FORGIVENESS. Black woman asks estranged father to give her away at her wedding. Discussion of her marrying a white man The film deals with issues of race, religion, abandonment, cultural differences and forgiveness. (SAT 6PM)

Jodi
dir. by Jordan Auten (Van Nuys, CA) TEXAS PREMIERE. DRAMA.
INSPIRATIONAL/ RACE. While at the neighborhood grocery store with her 6-year-old daughter Lux, Jodi confronts her past when she unexpectedly runs into the love of her life. (SAT 4PM)

Letters From Home
dir. by Keva Keyes (Goose Creek, SC) TEXAS PREMIERE.
PATRIOTIC DRAMA.  A team of U.S. Army soldiers deployed to a remote base in Afghanistan anxiously await mail call. It's through this encounter we get to know team members and witness the effects the letters have on them. (SAT 6PM)

Memoirs of a Black Latina
dir. by Crystal Roman (Staten Island, NY) WORLD PREMIERE.
An intimate portrait of 4 voices that have yet to be heard and their inner most thoughts and feelings towards their Triple Minority Status. Memoirs characters are based upon four emotions (Anger, Sad, Love and Empowered). (THUR 8PM)

Nobody Has to Know
dir. by Julian Walker (Davidson, NC) TEXAS PREMIERE.
DRAMA. Silent film about a man steps outside of his marriage and has an affair with another man. When his wife gets pregnant he calls off the affair. However, a phone call a month later reveals that the affair may stay with him for the rest of his life. (FRI 10PM)

Nothing More, Nothing Less
dir. by Dui Jarrod (New Orleans, LA) WORLD PREMIERE.  ROMANCE. The beautiful story of a young woman dealing with the death of her fiancé and the secrets that may never allow her to love again. (SAT-6PM)

Online
dir. by Keith Purvis (Chicago, IL) WORLD PREMIERE. COMEDY/ EXPERIMENTAL. ONLINE takes viewers along for the ride of a whirlwind romance that spotlights two fashionable 20-somethings who meet, fall in love, get married and get divorced all in a matter of seven minutes. (SAT-4PM)

Osvaldo's
dir. by Randy Wilkins (Bronx, NY) TEXAS PREMIERE. COMEDY ROMANTIC. Hispanic widower dates younger woman and addresses the difficulty his young daughter has with the new relationship. (THUR-8PM)

Painting Poetry
dir. by Earl Latchley (Houston, TX) ROMANCE. A poetic tale that tells the story of a painter struggling to cope with the loss of his beloved. (FRI-6PM)

Picnic
dir. by Alexandra Thomas (Austin, TX) COMEDY. Two black documentary film makers covering the story of a white supremacist sect. (FRI-10PM)

Proven Guilty
dir. by Kalyce Simpson (Dallas, TX) HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT FILM. DRAMA MYSTERY. (THUR-10AM)

Ralph, Esq.
dir. by Corey Shields (Houston, TX) WORLD PREMIERE. DRAMA. Attorney gives up his career to live the life of an amusement clown. (FRI-4PM)

Renouncing Angelica
dir. by Temi Ojo (CA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
CHRISTIAN ROMANCE. Best Short Film Port Harcourt, Nigeria 2009 (Film Festival) Gold Lion Film Festival WINNER Director's Award Swaziland, South Africa. Man falls in love with woman for whom he was a bone marrow donor.  (FRI-8PM)

Shades of Gray
dir. Sharon Hill (Los Angeles, CA) DRAMA ROMANCE. TEXAS PREMIERE.
Two inter-racial couples (WM-BF and BM-WF) examine each persons individual perspective on the relationships. Brilliantly written and acted. (THUR-8PM)

Sounds of Poetry
dir. by Henderson Maddox (Atlanta, GA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
DRAMA INSPIRATIONAL. Features Robin Givens. Young girl endures household with drugs and abuse, and uses her ability to write poetry as an escape which proves cathartic.  (FRI-6PM)

Steps
dir. by Barney Cheng (West Hollywood, CA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
CHRISTIAN. Young black girl is saved by the steps of Hispanic woman. (SAT-4PM)

Strait Talk
dir. by Chris Howell (Arlington, TX) WORLD PREMIERE.
Shot in Dallas. TV Pilot/ Talk show. (FRI-10AM)

Sugarman Fly High
dir. Robert Lavenstein (MD) WORLD PREMIERE.
DRAMA Young man discovers his estranged Aunt lives nearby and seeks her advice and 
guidance. He discovers a family secret that has been silenced 
by his father for over thirty years. (SAT-6PM)

Tags
dir. by Dominique DeLeon (Brooklyn, NY) WORLD PREMIERE.
SHORT "STREET BIOGRAPHY" Story of the commitment of a young graffiti artist to her craft. (FRI-10PM)

Thank You For Washing
dir. by Camille Brown (Los Angeles, CA) WORLD PREMIERE.
COMEDY/ ROMANCE. Brilliant short about a germaphobic office worker who falls in love with a co-worker.  (THUR-10AM; FRI-6PM)

The Funeral
dir. by Iverson White (Shorewood, WI) TEXAS PREMIERE.
A woman's husband dies and his girlfriend shows up at the funeral. How will the wife react? (SAT-4PM)

The Man in the Glass Case
dir. by Maxwell Addae (Los Angeles, CA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
DRAMATIC NARRATIVE FICTION.  James, an emotionally detached warehouse employee commits an irrational violent act against a co-worker, resulting in a confrontation with his boss that challenges his apathetic view of life. (FRI-4PM)

The New 20's
dir. by Maurice Dwyer  (North Hollywood, CA) WORLD PREMIERE.
WOMEN DRAMA MATURE ADULT Six friends, now all in their thirties, navigate through life’s trials and triumphs,dealing with real world issues they had not faced in college, or even in their twenties.  (SAT-4PM)

The Night We Died
dir. by Ron Gonzalez (TX) WORLD PREMIERE.
ROMANCE. Young professional man is faced with the difficult decision of what to do when once advised by an angel that someone he loves will be called to heaven. (FRI-6PM)

The Secret
dir. by Daria James (Houston, TX) DALLAS PREMIERE (FRI-4PM)

Type O
dir. by Brianna Brown (Mississauga, ON Canada) U.S. PREMIERE.
DRAMA INSPIRATIONAL. Divorcee is faced with challenge when her daughter who suffers from sickle-cell anemia  requires a blood transfusion, and the only potential donor is the girl’s Caucasian new step-mother. (FRI-6PM)

Unspoken
dir. by Rocky McKoy (Landover, MD) TEXAS PREMIERE.
ROMANCE DRAMA. A husband and wife struggle with a dying relationship while the husband is unable to communicate his pain.  (SAT-4PM)

Who Would You?
dir. by Todd Eric Valcourt (Los Angeles, CA)  TEXAS PREMIERE.
COMEDY ADULT A husband and wife who go a little too far while talking about each other's secret desires. (SAT-4PM)

You Better Run
dir. by David Beier (Natchitoches, LA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
DRAMA COURAGE. Aspiring college student has a run-in while on his way to an interview that will test his courage and perseverance.  (FRI-Noon)

DOCUMENTARIES

A Voice of the People, Biography of Norma Adams-Wade
dir. by LaDonna Castro (Plano, TX) Biography of the life of the first African-American female staff writer for the Dallas Morning News.  (THUR-10AM)

Black Soldiers in Blue
dir. by Warren Bass (Philadelphia, PA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
The story of the recruitment of black volunteers and their training at Camp William Penn, the first and largest federal training camp for black soldiers during the American Civil War. (FRI-Noon)

Can She Be Saved?
dir. by Yasmin Shiraz (Chantilly, VA) TEXAS PREMIERE.
Youth Activist, Yasmin Shiraz, interviews middle school girls who have been labeled as 'aggressive' and finds out the reasons behind their explosive behavior. (THUR-10AM)

Carry Me Home
dir. by Channing Godfrey Peoples (Dallas, TX)
Reveals the elaborate tradition of African-American funeral homes burying the dead in grand flair.  (FRI-10AM)

Ebony Goddess: Queen of Ile Aiye
dir. by Carolina Moraes-Liu (Bahia, Brazil) TEXAS PREMIERE.
This is a story of three young women competing for the title of Ebony Goddess in the largest urban black city outside Africa, Salvador da Bahia, Brazil. (THUR 8PM)

Herskovitz – At The Heart of Blackness
dir. by Smith, Brown & Sommers (CA) TEXAS THEATRICAL PREMIERE.
Special screening co-sponsored by Dallas Holocaust Museum. Biography of the Jewish professor credited with founding the academia of modern-day African-American studies.  (THUR- 6:15)

Inside Buffalo
dir. Fred Kuwornu (Rome, Italy) TEXAS PREMIERE.
Inside look at the African-American soldiers of World War II, and the social discrimination they endured. (FRI-Noon)

Nourishing The Kids Of Katrina - The Edible Schoolyard
dir. by Robert Grant (Sacramento, CA) WORLD PREMIERE.
Chef/educator Alice Waters' "edible schoolyard" program improves the emotional and physical health of African-American adolescents at a Hurricane Katrina ravaged grammar school. (THUR-4PM)

One Square Mile
dir. by Carl Crum (Fort Worth, TX)  DALLAS PREMIERE. The Lake Como community in Fort Worth, Texas; a neighborhood born out of segregation a century ago, now tries to cope with surrounding development and the effects of its heritage. (THUR-2PM)

Pray For Eric 
dir. by Ken Wyatt TEXAS PREMIERE.
NY-based filmmaker decides to visit his rural North Carolina neighbors who "allegedly" supported or sympathized with serial bomber Eric Rudolph. (THUR-4PM)

ANIMATION

O Pintor de Ceos (The Painter of Skies)
dir. by Jorge Morias Valle (Vigo-Pontevedra, SPAIN) WORLD PREMIERE.
DRAMA MYSTERY. A crazy painter, marked by his past, and his faithful assistant try to find a solution against perpetual storms. (FRI-2PM)