African American and international filmmakers of African descent are featured in the series along with non-black filmmakers who address African Diaspora themes. Alisa Starks, co-owner of Inner City Entertainment (ICE) made history in 1997 when she and her husband Donzell brought Hollywood back to minority communities in Chicago, "We desire to promote the full Black cinematic experience which includes Hollywood titles and obscure titles from under-exposed filmmakers." The duo is among a few African American movie theater owners.
Floyd Webb, series coordinator and founder of Chicago's Black Light Film Festival says the series offers a great opportunity to present films that people seldom get to see due to a lack of venues for global black cinema. "Now these films have a home at Chicago's ICE Theaters."
The first film on June 2 is a comedy set in contemporary Burkina Faso, Tasuma tells the story of a World War II veteran who has been trying for more than 50 years to obtain his well-deserved military pension. Convinced that he will be paid shortly, Sogo buys a mill on credit for the village. But the money does not arrive. When Sogo is put in prison because he cannot reimburse his loan, the women of the village rally to set him free.
A different film will be featured each month and will be followed by a group discussion lead by WVON radio personalities and members of the AIH board. Webb says for Tasuma, war veterans will be invited to share their experiences and observations regarding the current status and treatment of Black soldiers engaged in global wars.
Patrick Woodtor, AIH and African Festival of the Arts (AFA) co-founder says, "The film partnership with ICE and WVON radio allows us to extend the spirit of the African Festival of the Arts to celebrate African art, culture and contributions throughout the year." Woodtor hopes the series will inspire young people to pursue careers in cinematography and will encourage more creative interpretations of the Black experience through film.
The series runs every first Thursday of the month through April 2006 at the Chatham 14 movie complex. Tickets prices are: Children (under 12): $5 and Adults $10. Proceeds from the series benefit Africa International House, a not for profit organization dedicated to preserving and promoting African art, history and culture.
For more information contact;
Venisha White-Johnson
Tel: + 773-892-3204 ext. 2
E-mail: [email protected]
Also visit www.africainternationalhouse.org or www.wvon.com
Posted on Tuesday 31 May 2005
Festival Daily
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