tagged w/ African-American
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“George Washington” is David Gordon Green’s acclaimed impressionistic Southern Gothic debut film, which one reviewer described as “within a heart-shot of William Faulkner.” Green won the Best First Film prize from the New York Film Critics, the Discovery Award at Toronto and the Best Director Prize at The Newport Film Festival.
Green’s feature debut is a seamless blend of subjectivity, pseudo-documentary, evocation of childhood and mythopoeia. In an impoverished small town in North Carolina, various misfit and poor children converse. “Look at this place,” one boy says to another. “It looks like two tornadoes came through here.” The town is dilapidated; one of the “tornadoes” may have been the Great Depression. Shots of railroad tracks suggest dreams of getting out. But during the course of the film, death hovers: a boy dies; as a result, another boy feels that God’s judgment is close; another boy almost dies; a boy’s dog dies. The underlying theme of “George Washington” is clearly “the loss of all things.”
This piece presents a number of color photographs from the film and three videos. The videos include the hypnotic opening sequence of Green’s auspicious debut film “George Washington,” another video from the film described as an influential scene in modern cinema and an interview with Charlie Rose, where Green talks about his film “George Washington.”
http://disembedded.wordpress.com/2009/10/30/george-washington-the-loss-of-all-things/“George Washington” is David Gordon Green’s acclaimed impressionistic Southern... more
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Steven Wiltshire (born in 1974) is an accomplished architectural artist who has been diagnosed with an autistic spectrum disorder. Wiltshire’s work has been the subject of many television documentaries; neurologist Oliver Sacks praised his artistic work in the chapter “Prodigies” in his book “An Anthropologist on Mars.” Stephen Wiltshire’s many published art books include “Cities” (1989), “Floating Cities” (1991) and “Stephen Wiltshire’s American Dream” (1993).
Wiltshire is presently working to complete his last drawing in a series of city panoramas, this time of his spiritual home, New York City. Wiltshire’s collection of already completed works depicting some of the world’s most iconic cities already includes London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Rome, Madrid, Frankfurt, Dubai and Jerusalem. A 20-minute fly-over Manhattan this past weekend provided the memory for a 20-foot panorama of the city that he’s drawing throughout this week at Brooklyn’s Pratt Institute. Viewers can watch his progress on a live web cam or by visiting the Institute while he works from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday, Oct. 26 to Friday, Oct. 30, 2009.
This piece includes a number photographs, a slide show of Stephen Wiltshire's work, a video of Wiltshire's current work drawing the panorama of New York City and a live web cam of him at work on the panorama.Steven Wiltshire (born in 1974) is an accomplished architectural artist who has been... more
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“We Were Once A Fairytale” is an amazing, bizarre new short film directed by Spike Jonze, in collaboration with singer-rapper Kanye West. The film is set in a hip-hop nightclub, where the interactions are fragmented, the background music tweaked to a level of disturbing distortion and the lighting conjures up delusional effects. Jonze’s filmmaking cinematography and sound design skills authentically render the feeling of being extremely bewildered in a disorienting hot-spot nightclub.
The short film attempts to lampoon Kanye West’s well-known arrogance by evincing more self-conceit and self-deprecation, with a bizarre, hallucinatory ending that features a small demon-like furry rodent and a form of Samurai seppuku/hari-kari. In lampooning West’s self-indulgent public behaviors and image, Jonze transforms Kanye West into a more sympathetic character, at least on film, helping the singer to rid himself of whatever demons reside within him in a cathartic, moving and powerful final scene. “We Were Once A Fairytale” is a fairly disturbing, possibly awesome, but unquestionably super-bizarre work of art from director Spike Jonze.
This piece includes a number of color photographs and the awesome new short film by Spike Jonze, “We Were Once A Fairytale.”“We Were Once A Fairytale” is an amazing, bizarre new short film directed by Spike... more
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Too often, as a society, we insult our young people, labeling them as a lost generation. Here's a young man who has taken leadership in to his 11-year-old hands.
Jonathan E. McCoy gave a rousing speech earlier this year to his church in Baltimore about why our community needs to drop the 'N' word. His speech, "A New Petition," called for the discontinuation of that six-letter word, and the slang usage of the word.
According to his Facebook fan page, Jonathan has always been a gifted child. At an early age, he learned about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and was immediately drawn to Dr. King's commitment to justice for all. Jonathan's early desire to effect change, inspired him to use petitioning as a way to call out injustice.
His first act of petitioning apparently involved hand washing. While in the second grade, says his Facebook profile, Jonathan asked his fellow classmates to sign a petition that would allow students the choice to opt out of the school's enforced hand sanitizer policy and instead wash their hands with soap and water. When his teacher found out about the petition, she settled the request in the children's favor.
Since presenting a "New Petition" to the 1,500 plus congregants at Empowerment Temple in Baltimore, Jonathan has appeared on Black America Web with Tom Joyner, and spoken at numerous events around the country. Through his relationship with Morehouse College, Jonathan has promoted what is called a "Free Zone" initiative which discourages sagging, cursing, and use of the "N" word.
According to his fan page, Jonathan maintains a high GPA and has been the recipient of a plethora of awards, citations, and acknowledgments for his academic achievements. All of this comes at the encouragement of his parents, who support his talents.Too often, as a society, we insult our young people, labeling them as a lost... more
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“The Storefront Churches of Chicago” is an exquisite photographic documentary of Chicago’s African-American storefront churches. The powerful, reverent images in this work capture the small details that make the church spaces unique, familiar and alive. The churches were photographed mostly empty in order to capture interior images that revealed the unique personality of each sacred space.
The images illuminate the positive influences that these little churches provide as pillars of stability, support and hope, especially where crime, prostitution and drugs are often right outside the front door. As “portraits” of the sacred rooms, these elegantly refined photographs resonate with their creators’ personalities and pay tribute to the day-to-day guiding moral principles of the churches' leaders.
This detailed article presents a number of superb photographs, music audio and a beautiful slide show.“The Storefront Churches of Chicago” is an exquisite photographic documentary of... more
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In a wonderfully textured narrative style, African American filmmaker Regi Allen makes a sojourn to three West African countries to discover for himself the truth behind the myths that separate black identity in Africa from black identity in the Diaspora. With a critical lens often pointed at himself, Allen creates an intoxicatingly chaotic film that raises as many questions as it answers. Filled with deeply moving cinematic stills and 8MM footage, 10 Days In Africa is a song of love intended to heal many wounds, while weaving a complicated path to his firmer understanding of black identity.In a wonderfully textured narrative style, African American filmmaker Regi Allen makes... more
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To many, the word Juneteenth signifies freedom, and a time of joyful celebration; others aren’t familiar with the term and have no idea what it refers to. Also referred to as Freedom or Emancipation Day, Juneteenth is a combination of "June" and "19th" and is the day that celebrates the abolition of slavery in the state of Texas. However for 31 states, Juneteenth is a recognized holiday. In fact, Juneteenth is the oldest holiday that celebrates the abolition of slavery, with its first observance dating back to June 19, 1865, well over a century ago.
The date of June 19, 1865 is significant due to the fact that Texas was the last state to free her slaves. General Gordon Granger issued the order more than two years after President Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation; the first order of the Emancipation Proclamation was signed on September 22, 1862, the second on January 1, 1863. Though the Emancipation had legally granted Texas slaves their freedom, many were not freed until that infamous day of June 19, 1865 when General Granger and his army declared an official end to the Civil War by proclaiming order #3:To many, the word Juneteenth signifies freedom, and a time of joyful celebration;... more
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Growing up in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago’s South Side, Liz Toussaint straddled a musical divide.
“In front of my friends, we listened to Biggie Smalls and Tupac,” she recently recalled, sliding into a stage whisper. “I never told anybody that at home I was listening to the Dixie Chicks.”
Toussaint’s crush on country began on her family’s summer road trips — when that high lonesome sound was all their station wagon’s radio could dial in. Once back home, the teenager kept quiet about the passion she felt would ostracize her, and country music was a cultural curse made worse by the fact that Toussaint was a promising pop singer, performing alongside a young Jennifer Hudson.
“You’re supposed to be Mary J. Blige — a hip-hop queen!” her brother Mustafa Abdullah remembers telling Toussaint when she first informed him that her heart ached not for Nas, but Nashville.
“No,” Abdullah pleaded with her, pointing out that the family had a musical pedigree to maintain — he works as a popular Chicago hip-hop DJ and uncle Allen Toussaint is a well-known R&B pianist.
“You cannot do country music!”
But Toussaint couldn’t help it.
“I was dead set: I’m not singing unless I’m singing country,” the now-30-year-old Toussaint said last week, wearing a cowboy hat, boots and a pearly grin.
Still, “it took a while before I could actually sing my original material in front of people without (wetting) myself.”
This summer, Toussaint plans to release an album titled, “My Name is Liz,” where she sings of being a “City Girl with a Country Soul.”
Like other country records, the album is full of songs about tough times, lost love and gunfighting — although this single mother of two ain’t just whistling Dixie.
“Someone was shot down on my corner just last week,” said Toussaint, who now lives in the city’s West Pullman neighborhood. “It’s real out here!”
If Toussaint’s forthcoming album manages to succeed, it’ll put her in rarefied company as a black country singer: Only two of the Country Music Hall of Fame’s 105 members are black, and the last time an African-American artist had a hit on the country charts — before Darius Rucker this year — was Charley Pride in 1983.
“And let’s be honest, Darius Rucker wouldn’t be there if he wasn’t in Hootie & the Blowfish,” said Frankie Staton, who runs the Black Country Music Association out of her Nashville home.
“I’ve seen (black performers) come and go, I’ve been at the bedside of those who died trying to make it happen and didn’t, but that shouldn’t dissuade Liz from trying.”
Toussaint said she’s no stranger to discrimination: When she first sent her demos and head shot to country-friendly clubs, no one responded.Growing up in the Englewood neighborhood of Chicago’s South Side, Liz Toussaint... more
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Movie description>>"Based on true events during the 2000 election, AMERICAN VIOLET tells the astonishing story of Dee Roberts (critically hailed newcomer Nicole Beharie), a 24 year-old African American single mother of four young girls living in a small Texas town who is barely able to make ends meet.
While police drag Dee from work in handcuffs, dumping her in the squalor of the women’s county prison, the powerful local district attorney (Academy Award® nominee Michael O’Keefe) leads an extensive drug bust, sweeping her housing project with military precision. Dee soon discovers she has been charged as a drug dealer.
Even though Dee has no prior drug record and no drugs were found on her in the raid, she is offered a hellish choice: plead guilty and go home as a convicted felon or remain in prison, jeopardizing her custody and risking a long prison sentence.
She chooses to fight the district attorney and the unyielding criminal justice system, risking everything in a battle that forever changes her life and the Texas justice system. AMERICAN VIOLET also stars Academy Award® nominee Alfre Woodard, Emmy Award® winner Charles S. Dutton, Tim Blake Nelson, Will Patton and Xzibit.
NOTE: American Violet was initially inspired by an NPR story by Wade Goodwyn.
That was six years ago. Much of the film was informed by thousands of pages of information provided on a range of stories by the ACLU among others. A variety of media reports and legal documents, including sworn testimony, depositions and affidavits, all of which can be found on the public record also helped us find authentic patterns and voices for our storytelling. Finally, taped interviews with community members who had experienced circumstances similar to those outlined in our work proved useful.
However, American Violet is not a documentary. It is a narrative feature film that is, as it says, based on true events. Some scenes and characters have been fictionalized for dramatic effect and have no relationship to the historical record. Names have been changed to protect the innocent and also to protect this film."Movie description>>"Based on true events during the 2000 election, AMERICAN VIOLET... more
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Feature package on blind artist
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ENG package on Geaorge Foreman in 2003, Houston, Tx
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ENG package for MBC Network, aka The Black Family Channel
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ENG packages shot and edited by Ted Irving
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"The African American World Cultural Center Inc. said Monday that its board voted March 23 to dissolve as an organization, ending plans to build a community-owned cultural center in Milwaukee.
The organization will cease to exist as of April 15. A small remaining portion of donated proceeds will be distributed among African-American arts organizations Ko-thi Dance Company, Hansberry Sands Theatre Company, African American Children’s Theatre Company and African World Festival.
"We have given it our all since the fall of 1996, however, the current economic times have forced us to realize the only option we have is to terminate the organization’s efforts to build this cultural facility," said Tyrone Dumas, AAWCC board chairman.
The proposed African American World Cultural Center, which was originally planned for Johnsons Park at North 17th Street and West Fond du Lac Avenue, had been in the planning stages since 1996. The site was selected due to its connection with the Underground Railroad. A historical marker just east of the Johnsons Park site refers to a farmhouse owned by abolitionist Rev. Samuel Brown that was used as a safe haven by runaway slaves.
Difficulty raising sufficient funds stalled the original plan, so an alternative site in the Bronzeville cultural and entertainment district north of downtown Milwaukee was proposed in 2006 with the hope that it would breathe new life into the project.""The African American World Cultural Center Inc. said Monday that its board voted... more
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http://breakroomlive.com
BreakRoomLive with Maron and Seder is LIVE weekdays, 3-4pm from the Air America Break Room.
McCain is looking for a pardon for the great heavyweight of yesteryear Jack Johnson in keeping with that theme Marc asks for pardon for other great entertainers.
Catch comedy sketches, interviews, political and cultural discussions, and interact with hosts and guests live: 3pm, M-F @ BreakRoomLive.com!
BreakRoomLive with Marc Maron and Sam Seder is a production of http://airamerica.comhttp://breakroomlive.com
BreakRoomLive with Maron and Seder is LIVE weekdays, 3-4pm... more
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Barack Obama’s election as president is prompting major changes in the nation’s black press, ushering in a series of firsts that editors say will reshape print, Internet, radio and television coverage aimed at African-American audiences.
Essence, the top-selling magazine among black women, will have a full-time White House reporter for the first time. Ebony magazine will add a White House reporter, either full time or as needed. Its sister publication, Jet magazine, will have a weekly two-page Washington report in every issue.
And Black Entertainment Television is scrapping its usual fare of videos and sitcoms for a four-hour live broadcast of Obama’s swearing-in — just as the leading cable network in black households did for both party conventions last summer, and on Election Day. TV One will do the same, airing 21 hours of inauguration coverage throughout the day.
In some ways, the moves mark a return to a time when the black press — particularly magazines — were newsier.
The moves are also an indication of the deep ties Obama formed with the black press — and by extension, the black community — over the course of the campaign. Black support for the president-elect was 95 percent, a record.Barack Obama’s election as president is prompting major changes in the nation’s... more
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Magic Theatre in San Francisco needs $350,000 by Jan. 9th or it will not be able to continue its season and may have to close its doors. The article also contains information on how to give your tax-deductable donation.
This is from the MT's webpage:
"Magic Theatre plays and playwrights have won four Pulitzer Prizes for Drama (Sam Shepard, David Mamet, Paula Vogel, Nilo Cruz) and ten Obie Awards (Off-Broadway, NY), including Best New Play for Fool for Love and Buried Child by Sam Shepard and Josephine the Mouse Singer by Michael McClure. This season Michelle Carter won her second PEN-West Award for Drama, for Ted Kaczynski Killed People with Bombs, having won two years earlier for Hillary and Soon-Yi Shop for Ties. Other awards include the Kennedy Center Award, numerous Bay Area Critics Circle Awards, the Los Angeles Drama-Logue Award, and the NAACP Image Award...Magic Theatre is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) arts organization, supported by ticket revenue, grants from local and national agencies, as well as hundreds of individual and corporate donors."Magic Theatre in San Francisco needs $350,000 by Jan. 9th or it will not be able to... more
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Deep in West Oakland, at the Prescott Elementary school, kids are learning about themselves, life, and juggling. The Prescott Circus is an afterschool program that for 25 years has been training kids in circus skills and performing in and around Oakland.Deep in West Oakland, at the Prescott Elementary school, kids are learning about... more
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QBuG
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added this
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12 months ago
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History has been made and regardless of your political disposition. The problems of the past are not ones to be forgotten but in an attempt at progression we can look forward to the future with genuine hope.History has been made and regardless of your political disposition. The problems of... more
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