FESTIVALS: On the Radar: Festivals for Black Filmmakers to Attend

Summer and fall are brimming with film festivals that seek submissions from novice and seasoned filmmakers alike. If you're looking to get a "foot in the door" of the film industry, L.A. Shorts, DC Black Film Festival and African Diaspora Film Festival are just a few of the festivals that are excellent launching pads. If you're a veteran filmmaker and want to share your latest work, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and the New York Film Festival are a sample of choice festivals that will attract your peers as well as fans of your work. 

Black culture isn't a monolith, so the African American vision isn't the only perspective when it comes to Black films. Filmmakers from the Diaspora also play an important role in shaping our stories. Black women also have unique perspectives to share that are often culled from experiences born of sexism, racism, and oppression. Following are upcoming festivals that pursue, showcase and invite a wide range of talent that reflects the diversity and complexity of Black culture.

1. 23rd L.A. Shorts International Film Festival (July 17-29) - They're accepting films submissions until June 7 and screenplays until May 31. One event of note is “CodeBlack in the Industry,” moderated by CodeBlack Productions Company executive Christina Sibul on July 31 at 4:00 PM. South African director Zwelethu Radebe won Best Foreign Film in 2018 for searing The  Hangman. https://www.lashortsfest.com/

2. 56th New York Film Festival (September 28-October 14) - Hosted by the Film Society at Lincoln Center. Accepting film submissions until June 7. “An Afternoon with Barry Jenkins” will be one of the Special Events. The Oscar winner will talk about adapting James Baldwin and his filmmaking techniques. https://www.filmlinc.org/nyff2018/

3.  29th Annual IFP Gotham Awards (TBA) - These awards are streamed online. Last year, Breakthrough Series–Short Form Award went to 195 Lewis, a cheeky seriocomedy navigating the world of a black lesbian couple in Bed-Stuy Brooklyn. https://gotham.ifp.org/

4. 46th Telluride Film Festival (August 30-September 2) - Accepting features, shorts and student films until July 1. Seminars, screenings and conversations take place during the festival. https://www.telluridefilmfestival.org/

5. Toronto International Film Festival (September 5-15) - Accepting films until June 14. 2018's “TIFF Next Wave” winner was Aäläm-Wärqe Davidian’s Fig Tree, an intense drama about the Ethiopian Civil War. The story is centered around a Jewish Ethiopian girl and her Christian boyfriend. https://www.tiff.net/tiff/

6. DC Black Film Festival (August 15-17) - Accepting narrative features, documentary features, shorts (narrative or doc), web series, animation, experimental and student films until May 20. Darien Sills-Evans won Best Narrative Feature for One Bedroom and Best Documentary Feature went to Tina Brown and Dyana Winkler for United Skates. http://dcbff.org/

7. Martha's Vineyard African American Film Festival (August 5-10) - Accepting features, shorts and documentaries until May 19. http://dcbff.org/ In addition, Run&Shoots Filmworks in collaboration with the Newman Center for the Performing Arts will debut The Color of Conversation Film Festival (July 18-20) in Denver, CO. http://colorofconversation.com/

8. BronzeLens Film Festival (August 21-25) - No longer accepting film submissions. Among the winners last year were Tina Lifford/Visionary Superstar and Samantha Vincent/Vanguard Superstar. https://bonzelens.com/

9. African Diaspora Film Festival (Chicago-June, Washington D.C.-July, Paris-September, New York-November/December) - Accepting short narratives and documentaries until June 30 and features until August 31 for the New York Festival. https://nyadiff.org/spring-series-2019/.