BLACKBIRD

 Each film will be followed by online discussions and open community conversations with directors, producers, special guests, and thought partners, fostering dialogue that transcends generations and geographies.

Curator’s note and invitation:Taking the song Blackbird, performed by Nina Simone, as the emotional grounding for the program, BLACKBIRD is a short, capsule film program curated by Shannon Ayers Holden, Associate Director of Community Relations at Alserkal Avenue. A distinctly Black point of view connects each film, and each responds thematically to the simple yet powerful concept of fulfilling the promise, whether as an individual, a community, or nations on the global stage.

This year’s program presents a series of “firsts,” and opens with Mississippi Masala, directed by Mira Nair. The film is the first widely distributed feature-length film to unapologetically present romance between African American and South Asian protagonists.Daughter of the Dust, directed by Julie Dash, is recognised as the first feature-length film directed by an African American woman to receive a wide theatrical release. The film, which has been digitally restored, was selected for the Library of Congress's National Film Registry in 2004.First released in 1976 and digitally restored in 2023, Pressure, directed by Sir Horace Ove, is the first feature-length film in the United Kingdom to be written and directed by a Black filmmaker. Drumline, directed by Charles Stone III,is the first major feature-length film to center on marching band and drumline culture and sportsmanship at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs).Rounding out the program is Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project, directed by Matt Wolf, which documents the first known archival project byan individual to record news and programming 24 hours a day for over 30 years.Join us for screenings, filmmaker Q&As, and discussions throughout the weekend.