Cinemateca Brasileira screens program on independent Black cinema in the US
'The Other American Cinema' brings together six films from 1920 to 2022, curated by Richard Peña, on Saturday (31) and Sunday (1st).
Translated from the Portuguese original by the Panorama newsroom. Read in Portuguese
Summary written by the Panorama newsroom from the sources listed below. Facts are attributed to the original publications.
The Cinemateca Brasileira, in São Paulo, presents on Saturday (31) and Sunday (1st) the program "O Outro Cinema Americano" (The Other American Cinema), dedicated to Black filmmakers who worked outside the major Hollywood studios, Folha de S.Paulo reported on October 30.
The lineup spans more than a hundred years of history, from the early decades of cinema to contemporary productions. There are six titles from different eras, dealing with African American experiences and the limits imposed by the industry. In two days of screenings, audiences will be able to see how these filmmakers confronted those barriers.
The selection includes "Within Our Gates" (1920), by Oscar Micheaux, regarded as one of the precursors of independent Black American cinema, and "Killer of Sheep" (1977), by Charles Burnett.
The selection is completed by "The Blood of Jesus" (1942), by Spencer Williams; "Symbiopsychotaxiplasm: Take One" (1968), by William Greaves; "Ganja & Hess" (1973), by Bill Gunn; and "Residue" (2022), by Merawi Gerima.
The curator is Richard Peña, professor emeritus at Columbia University and director of the New York Film Festival from 1988 to 2012. He will attend the screenings and comment on the history of independent Black cinema in the United States.