
Who knew Twitter would turn into the next Hollywood casting office! It’s amazing that this tweet about the two stars at a 2014 Miu Miu fashion show:
Rihanna looks like she scams rich white men and lupita is the computer smart best friend that helps plan the scans https://t.co/PhWs1xd3nj
— kateria ? (@artthekid) April 18, 2017
launched this result:
Exclusive: It's happening! @Rihanna and @Lupita_Nyongo will LITERALLY costar in a buddy movie by @Ava DuVernay: https://t.co/Mz8k2cT5fH pic.twitter.com/Xev716aLt5
— Entertainment Weekly (@EW) May 22, 2017
According to Entertainment Weekly:
After a dramatic negotiation session at the Cannes Film Festival, Netflix has nabbed a film project pairing Grammy winner Rihanna with Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o, in a concept that began as a Twitter sensation. Ava DuVernay (Selma) will direct, and Issa Rae (Insecure) is writing the screenplay.
According to sources, Netflix landed the project in a very aggressive bid, beating out multiple other suitors.
The film will go into production in 2018 after DuVernay finishes her latest project. I, for one, is excited for this film and I can’t wait to see it when it comes to Netflix. Twitter–particularly #BlackTwitter, which started the whole movie talk–is excited, too:
The Rihanna and Lupita Nyong’o buddy movie is actually happening
Twitter users have also continued the casting train by providing Ava DuVernay tons of suggestions:
. @ava hey, can @violadavis be the mentor who helps @rihanna and @Lupita_Nyongo scam rich white men!?!?
— Assata Shake Dat Ass (@Unaamorcitaa) May 23, 2017
Please @ava @Lupita_Nyongo @rihanna @netflix @NetflixFR
PLEASE ??
Bring @joanneprada to show the characters how to scam, in the movie. ??
— Sylvain Curatola (@SylvainCuratola) May 22, 2017
I need Lupita and Rihanna to scam Casey Affleck in this new Netflix movie.
— Ebba (@illestbaba) May 22, 2017
.@netflix I know Lupita and Rihanna only scam white men, but…crossover? pic.twitter.com/8U0TcX4kku
— ??♂️avier Harding (@iamxavier) May 22, 2017
Can @tonygoldwyn be one of the rich white men that they swindle? @ava https://t.co/A345Xe4EpL
— Nek? (@sweetneka_) May 23, 2017
Since this is a real thing now, @ava I GOT YOU! https://t.co/4ZtrlVtYwE
— KEESH! (@_kcnvrmnd) May 23, 2017
I nominate this as the song that plays as Rihanna & Lupita walk away from their first heist. @ava https://t.co/N92QRIS1DK
— Nichole ✨✨✨ (@tnwhiskeywoman) May 23, 2017
I finished casting the movie @ava @rihanna @Lupita_Nyongo @iJesseWilliams @IssaRae pic.twitter.com/PtXCOxmr1k
— threelilbirdsss ? (@threelilbirdsss) May 23, 2017
Hey @ava if you and Issa are looking here's a few seasoned white men for Riri and Lupita to scam out of them coins pic.twitter.com/Vaot2b8Njy
— Martian Manhunter Jr (@BlckBolex) May 22, 2017
As Shadow and Act brought up, the big question is whether the person whose tweet originated this idea will get paid. “This could be one of those precedent-setting situations,” wrote Shadow and Act’s Tambay Obenson. If there is payment on the way, that means that the floodgates have opened for tons of films coming from Twitter, with tons of creators getting some steep royalty checks.
What do you think about this film? Give your opinions in the comments section below!

Ava DuVernay has been killing us softly with pictures from the set of A Wrinkle in Time, and now we’ve gotten one of the first teaser images from the film!
DuVernay tweeted out the teaser image with the tweet, “WRINKLE IN TIME. In theaters. April 6, 2018.”
WRINKLE IN TIME. In theaters. April 6, 2018. ? pic.twitter.com/8CQ9o1BAgR
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
Here are some of the other tweets DuVernay have put out recently, complete with tons of teaser images.
Principal photography for WRINKLE IN TIME wrapped last night! An epic adventure. I loved each and every minute. xo! pic.twitter.com/D3z5J6KBIz
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on @RowanBlanchard! She joined us for a few days and made a big impression. She’s a real artist with a voice. Thanks, Rowan. ? pic.twitter.com/rr00XTiV5c
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a WRINKLE IN TIME wrap on #AndreHolland. A dream of an actor and a man. Thanks, Dre. ? pic.twitter.com/wPXxC2cSDi
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on our golden boy and incredible discovery @DericMccabe. This child has a spirit like no one else. You’ll see. Thanks, D! ? pic.twitter.com/B07BHtt2zN
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on @MindyKaling! She was the very first WRINKLE casting idea I had. So grateful she said yes! Thanks, Mindy! Love to you! ? pic.twitter.com/RoCIQukc2G
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on @LeviZaneMiller for WRINKLE IN TIME. Our leading man. An actor with great power. And a gentleman already. Thanks, Levi! ? pic.twitter.com/UJNW99yeRq
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on @RWitherspoon! She blew me away everyday with her tremendous talent. But more than that, w/ her kindness. Thanks, Reese! ? pic.twitter.com/BPCsvoOdKJ
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on @Oprah for WRINKLE! Gosh, we had fun. My great friend. Her role as MRS. WHICH is literally out of this world. Thanks, OW. ? pic.twitter.com/dk1KuGyw1F
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
That’s a wrap on @StormReid. Hands down, one of the most formidable actors I’ve worked with. The world will know her name. Love you, @Storm. pic.twitter.com/xM2FiOywaH
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
The great @StormReid is Meg. She does it all. Happiness. Heartbreak. Action. Emotion. And w/ grace. Our hero. In the story. And on the set. pic.twitter.com/dKYcDW6B76
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
Thanks to the truly beautiful crew of WRINKLE IN TIME and our studio for standing with me every step of the way. Extraordinary experience. pic.twitter.com/1Zyxg39fgO
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) March 12, 2017
The film adaptation of the popular Madeleine L’Engle book has already made waves for casting newcomer Storm Reid as Meg Murry. The reason folks were wavy: because the role could have gone to, as Hollywood is prone to do, the many white newcomers while POC newcomers go overlooked. The cast is also multicultural, featuring Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, André Holland, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Levi Miller, Zach Galifianakis, Michael Peña, Bellamy Young, Rowan Blanchard, Mindy Kaling, Oprah Winfrey, Deric McCabe, and many others, including Akemi Look, Ke’Andra Samone, Punnavith Koy, Conrad Roberts, Sheila M. Lockhart, Jasmine Dampiér, Daniel R. Lawson, etc. In short, we’ve got a lot of multiculturalism in the main and background cast.
In full disclosure, I, unlike a lot of folks in elementary school, didn’t read A Wrinkle in Time. But, I am excited to see this film and finally understand why the book has legions of fans. If you’ve rocked with this book since the beginning, write about your love for the story in the comments section below!
There’s a couple of big ticket items to discuss! Topping the list is Star Wars: Episode VIII, Ava DuVernay’s projects, and some trailers from Roots and Underground.
Star Wars: Episode VIII
The biggest news of this week is the beginning of filming for Star Wars: Episode VIII! John Boyega, who just won a Rising Star BAFTA the night before filming, tweeted out this declaration Monday.
First day on Star Wars 8 complete ! We must face them! Fight them!
— John Boyega (@JohnBoyega) February 15, 2016
Other big news surrounding Episode VIII is the additional casting. Coming to the already diverse cast list are Benecio Del Toro, Laura Dern and newcomer Kelly Marie Tran, who has worked with Sarah Hyland in XOXO and has various TV credits, including TruTV’s Adam Ruins Everything and NBC’s About a Boy.
Star Wars released this official production announcement, which is also marks the start of the Star Wars hype machine once again.
Ava DuVernay’s film and TV projects
Ava DuVernay is doing major things right now! First, she’s working with Oprah on the OWN adaptation of Queen Sugar. The first table read happened Sunday, and DuVernay chronicled it on Twitter:
That’s a wrap on the Valentine’s Day launch table read of Ava DuVernay’s QUEEN SUGAR from Warner Horizon for @OWNTV! pic.twitter.com/9g0fDcCyaN
— Queen Sugar (@QueenSugarOWN) February 15, 2016
Also, DuVernay is in contention to direct two films: the film adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time (a very creepy book, if you ask me), and Intelligent Life, a sci-fi thriller potentially starring Lupita Nyong’o. The latter film is what’s exciting me the most, since black women in sci-fi is still a revolutionary thing to see (Nyong’o also’s got her sci-fi scorecard filled up thanks to Star Wars, but even in that, she’s simply voicing a character, not appearing as herself on screen, something a lot of viewers took issue with). But all of this directorial news is encouraging, given the #OscarsSoWhite climate we’re in. DuVernay’s upcoming jobs are just a drop in the bucket when it comes to Hollywood fixing its diversity-behind-the-camera problems, but her opportunities do show that 1) Hollywood can act responsibly when it feels like it; it’s ineffectiveness is just mostly due to laziness and status-quo thinking over anything and 2) that the talent of people of color (in this case, women of color) can and will be recognized, despite the fractured systems that were created to keep them out and on the sidelines.
Roots and Underground
The trailers for History’s Roots remake and WGN’s upcoming slave series Underground have left me impressed, and I’m sure you’ll be just as impressed by them as well. Below are the trailers as well as the Underground first look. On a shallow note: Kunta Kinte’s turbans are my favorite things ever. Roots premieres Memorial Day; Underground premieres March 9.
(Read about my EW Community articles about the original Roots and the upcoming Underground here and here!)
The Danish Girl
If you loved The Danish Girl, it’s coming to DVD/Blu-ray March 1. If you want to rewatch it even earlier than that, the digital download will be available Feb. 16.
Here are the pertinent deets via Universal Pictures’ press release:
With love comes the courage to be yourself in The Danish Girl, coming to Digital HD onFebruary 16, 2016, and Blu-ray™, DVD and On Demand on March 1, 2016, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Inspired by the lives of Lili Elbe and Gerda Wegener, the remarkable love story is “a cinematic landmark,” according to Variety’s Peter Debruge. The Danish Girl on Blu-ray™ and DVD comes with an exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette about the making of the film. The Focus Features release is nominated for four Academy Awards® including Best Actor (Eddie Redmayne), Best Supporting Actress (Alicia Vikander), Best Costume Design (Paco Delgado), and Best Production Design (Production Designer, Eve Stewart; Set Decorator, Michael Standish).
Academy Award® winner Eddie Redmayne (The Theory of Everything) and Academy Award® nominee Alicia Vikander (Ex Machina) star for Academy Award®-winning director Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech and Les Misérables). In the 1920s, a strong and loving marriage evolves as Gerda Wegener (Vikander) supports Lili Elbe (Redmayne) during her journey as a transgender woman. Through the other, each of them finds the courage to be who they are at heart. “Eddie Redmayne and Alicia Vikander are sensational!” declares Access Hollywood’s Scott Mantz, while Debruge of Variety raves, “Redmayne gives the greatest performance of his career.”
Also starring Ben Whishaw (Skyfall), Sebastian Koch (Homeland), Amber Heard (Zombieland), and Matthias Schoenaerts (Far from the Madding Crowd), The Danish Girl is a moving and sensitive portrait that Lou Lumenick of The New York Post calls “a remarkable and timely story.”
BLU-RAYTM AND DVD BONUS FEATURE:
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The Making of The Danish Girl – Eddie Redmayne, Alicia Vikander, Tom Hooper, and others on the filmmaking team share some of the creative processes that enhanced the beauty of the movie.
Want to read more about diverse entertainment? Read the February issue of COLOR BLOCK Magazine! |
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Casting News:
Zhang Ziyi to Star in ‘East/West’ Comedy for Universal
American Gods Author Neil Gaiman on Why Casting The 100s Ricky Whittle as Shadow Is So Vital
Idris Elba in Talks for the Lead in The Mountain Between Us
John Ridley’s ABC Pilot ‘Presence’ Casts Marcus Anderson
Archie Panjabi to Star in ABC Anthology Drama ‘The Jury’
Other News:
How a Bruce Lee Origin Tale Is Taking Flight With Chinese Money and Abundant Diplomacy
Sundance Fights Tide With Films Like ‘The Birth of a Nation’
The Magicians’ Arjun Gupta on Hollywood Diversity and Penny’s Portrayal in the 4th Episode
What do you think of these stories? Give your comments below!
There has been too much Oscars news lately! Well, complaining is wrong; there’s been just the right amount of Oscars news since it’s actually news affecting change. And in the past 24+ hours, there has been tons of movement (and tons of upset). Here’s what’s happened in four sections.
The facts
The big fact of the weekend is that the Oscars has changed its rules. In a sweeping historic move, the Academy has basically stuck it to the old white members in its ranks.
Needless to say, people aren’t happy about this, but that comes later in this article.
The support (and supportive critiques)
Many in the acting world and April Reign, the creator of #OscarsSoWhite have given their support (and in some cases, their constructive criticism) of the new changes.
“I’m very encouraged. I think that the changes that will be made will make a significant different,” Reign told the Los Angeles Times. I appreciate the fact that the vote was unanimous, which indicates to me that the academy is serious about making the organization momre inclusive and more diverse. I’ve spoken about my concern that some of the older academy members still have a vote even though they aren’t active in the film industry an that appears to be addressed. The fact that they will be proactively looking for more diverse members is [also] exciting.”
Ava DuVernay tweeted this:
Just received from @TheAcademy. One good step in a long, complicated journey for people of color + women artists. pic.twitter.com/CDB3ro2E4Q
— Ava DuVernay (@AVAETC) January 22, 2016
Shame is a helluva motivator.
— Ava DuVernay (@AVAETC) January 22, 2016
We’ve all felt shame even when we didn’t believe we were wrong. It’s the fact that EVERYONE ELSE thinks you’re wrong. Fix it mode kicks in.
— Ava DuVernay (@AVAETC) January 22, 2016
Marginalized artists have advocated for Academy change for DECADES. Actual campaigns. Calls voiced FROM THE STAGE. Deaf ears. Clòsed minds.
— Ava DuVernay (@AVAETC) January 22, 2016
Whether it’s shame, true feelings, or being dragged kicking + screaming, just get it done. Because the alternative isn’t pretty.
— Ava DuVernay (@AVAETC) January 22, 2016
Don Cheadle said during a Sundance interview that the changes are stage one in a much-needed process. “I think it is a step in the right direction, a needed step,” he said, according to Deadline. “But people really have to have access to the stories they want to tell. So what we really need is people in positions to greenlight those stories, not a hunk of metal.” (I’m assuming the “hunk of metal” Cheadle is referring to is the Oscar itself.)
Oscar nominated director Alejandro Iñárritu said during the PGA Breakfast that the new steps the Academy is taking is a start, but change needs to happen outside of the Academy and with the industry itself.
“I think the things the Academy has just made is a great step, but the Academy really is at the end of the chain,” he said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Iñárritu also said, “Hopefully, active change, positive cahnge, they can start at the beginning of the chain. The complexity of the demographics of this country should be reflected not only at the end of the chain.” He also added that “cinema is the mirror where we can all see ourselves.”
Screenwriter/director/producer Jonathan Demme issued an op-ed for Deadline saying that the Academy needs to change the current nominations to reflect the diversity that was a part of the 2015 film year. He provides the example of Tangerine and how the Academy clearly ignored it. To quote him:
“Superb in every aspect and featuring dazzling, heroic performances by fantastic LGBTQ actors in leading roles, Tangerine had no campaign, but someone managed to send out screeners. The film was shot—brilliantly–on i-phones (!!!!!). This hugely entrtainiing and ground-breaking film brings fresh meaning to the “outstanding achievement” verbiage that defines the point of the Oscars. Did enough Academy voters—overwhelmingly older, white males—watch the Tangerine screener to give it a shot at nomination? Does our membership gravitate—maybe more or less exclusively—to white stories, white actors, white filmmakers? It sure feels that way, doesn’t it?”
These comments aren’t necessarily a reaction to the Academy’s changes, but Viola Davis’ comments during Elle’s 6th Annual Women in Television Dinner said the members of the Academy should ask themselves some questions about the industry.
“How many black films are being produced every year?” she said, according to BET. “How are they being distributed? The films that are being made—are the big-time producers thinking outside of the box in terms of how to cast the role? Can you cast a black woman in that role? Can you cast a black man in that role?”
Davis also touched on the pay discrepancy, which is even worse for actresses of color than it is for white actresses. “You could probably line up all the A-list black actresses out there [and] they probably don’t make what one A-list white woman makes in one film. That’s the problem. You can change thee Academy, but if there are no black films being produced, what is there to vote for?”
Malik Yoba wrote this on Instagram, stating that being included in Hollywood shouldn’t be viewed as “a birthright”:
http://www.thewrap.com/danny-devito-oscar-diversity-america-racist-country-genocide/
Marlon Wayans, on the other hand provides a perspective that could be argued as missing the point. During an Essence Live appearance for his latest film, Fifty Shades of Black, Wayans said that while the discussion about diversity in Hollywood is important, showing up to support minority films is even more important.
“How about we all show up and we support these movies? A lot of times we complain but yet we sit in our seat opening weekend and we don’t support our films,” he told Essence. “Everybody out there, come support because Hollywood is not about black and white. Hollywood is about gree. So why don’t we support our own, make sure we make the green because as long as you make thee green, we can make more movies and then we won’t have these discussions.”
(Some would say that Wayans’ point dodges the actual issue at hand; it’s not about people not supporting minority films, because people did and have been supporting minority films—Straight Outta Compton doesn’t get to number one at the box office and stay there through just critical support. The real issue is getting the films that the people love awarded for their achievements.)
Some other things of note are some highly interesting and necessary articles about the racist underside of the Oscars and the industry at large. Entertainment Weekly has teased their magazine interview with Sacheen Littlefeather, the woman who stood on stage and delivered Marlon Brando’s message to the Academy in 1973 when he boycotted on behalf of Native Americans. NBC Latino provides a list of Latino films that could easily be nominated for an Oscar. Mashable also has an article addressing how Latino, Asian, and Native American actors are hardly nominated for an Oscar. (This also goes into why the industry needs to be changed; currently, the industry itself doesn’t greenlight enough films telling Latino, Native American and Asian stories, and when there are Latino, Native or Asian characters in films, they are sometimes played by white or “beige” actors, such as Emma Stone in Aloha and Tilda Swinton as The Ancient One, while Benedict Wong is stuck with playing what could be racist stereotype—Doctor Strange’s manservant/sidekick.)
Want to read more about diverse entertainment? Read the inaugural issue of COLOR BLOCK Magazine! |
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The outrage
The outrage to #OscarsSoWhite took a while to whip up, but it came, especially after the Academy changed its rules. Friday alone saw Charlotte Rampling, Michael Caine and Julie Delphy saying annoying, tone-deaf and, in Rampling and Delphy’s cases, extremely racist things.
Rampling, who is nominated for an Oscar for her role in 45 Years, said the Oscars controversy was “racist to whites.”
“One can never really know, but perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list,” she said to French radio station Europe 1, according to The Guardian. She also said in response to a question about if the Academy should have quotas, “Why classify people? These days everyone is more or less accepted…People will always say: ‘Him, he’s less handsome’; ‘Him, he’s too black’; ‘He is too white’…someone will always be saying ‘You are too’ [this or that]…But do we have to take from this that there should be lots of minorities everywhere?”
She later walked back her statement after a vicious roasting on Twitter. According to USA Today, the statement, which was given to CBS News, states, “I regret that my comments could have been misinterprted. I simply meant to say that in an ideal world every performance will be given equal opportunities for consideration.” The apology-PR damage control also stated, “Diversity in our industry is an important issue that needs to be addressed. I am highly encouraged by the changes announced today by the academy to diversify its membership.”
Michael Caine said that black actors should “be patient,” a statement that was in response to the fear of the Academy using quotas, but it’s also a statement that could be uncomfortably interpreted as telling minorities to wait their turn. As he told Radio 4 according to the Independent, “There’s loads of black actors. In the end you can’t vote for an actor because he’s black. You can’t say ‘I’m going to vote for him, he’s not very good, but he’s black, I’ll vote for him…Of course [nominations and wins] will come. It took me years to get an Oscar, years.”
Julie Delpy also put in her two cents, saying that it’s harder to be a woman in showbusiness than it is a black person. “Sometimes, I wish I were African-American because people don’t bash them afterwards,” she said to The Wrap. Her statement widely ignores the fact that 1) black women are also women, which illustrates why people should have intersectional feminism and 2) that all women of color including black women have it easier in Hollywood, when women of color have historically had it much harder in terms of finding roles, pay equal to their white female counterparts, and the respect white actresses receive on a daily basis.
The real fire came when the Academy released their new rules, leading many in Hollywood, mostly those members among the older set, to release angry statements. You can read many of their statements at The Hollywood Reporter (and again), The Los Angeles Times, and Deadline, but most of them (including those who were smart enough to remain anonymous for fear of backlash) include feelings of resentment at what they feel is the Academy’s implication that their age makes them unable to judge talent as well as the implication that their voting strategies have been biased (or as many have said, “racist.”)
While the angry members are the most vocal right now, there are quite a few members who are glad of the changes, including those who are of the older set. These members recognize that there’s a clear bias at work when most of the Academy is made of old white men. 72-year-old actor Robert Walden summed it up perfectly when emailing his response to the Times. “I can tell you now that if the voters had actually viewed ‘Beasts of No Nation’ and ‘Straight Outta Compton,’ the situation might have been different. But because of the subject matter, or presumed understanding of what the films were about, I’d venture half the members did not see thoe films. …I feel a significant segment of the older members might assume that certain films don’t appeal or ‘speak’ to them. That they speak to a ‘niche’ and not to us all.”
Takeaways
There’s going to be tons of Oscar talk for the weeks leading up to Feb. 28, the night the Oscars airs (still hosted by Chris Rock, thank goodness; get your popcorn ready for viewing some uncomfortable faces in the audience). But I have read enough to give some takeaways, and these takeaways are going to be just the same now as they will be in the future.
The older members who are upset (including, in an ironic twist, Tab Hunter, who is for all intents and purposes the first outed gay actor of the 1950s and 1960s) are upset for very human, very selfish reasons. Their view is that the Academy sees them as not just old, but antiquated and out of touch with the times. To a certain degree, the Academy’s view is just that; they are too out of touch and too set in their ways to see past what they think is and isn’t art worthy of being nominated. That’s a problem, and that problem doesn’t just occur with Hollywood; it occurs in many other segments of life in which an older body is trying to impose old rules on a younger, more agile, more integrated set of individuals. America, to be frank, was founded because of an older “parent” trying to rule a younger country who wanted to fail or succeed by their own terms. Just like with the War for Independence, the Academy and its sympathizers are now rebelling against some of the older set who are comfortable having things just as they were. There’s a historical analog to this too: the South wanted things to stay the same because many white southerners were comfortable with Jim Crow and other segregationist tactics because they served their interests. When stuff started changing, they started rebelling against the tides of change. They ultimately lost that fight, for the most part, and the Old Guard at the Academy’s going to lose their fight as well.
Perhaps, some of the old members who feel like they’ve lost their way will find another way to assert what remains of their power, but it’ll never be like how it was before. Hollywood itself won’t be the same after this controversy, because now the onus will not just be on the Academy to provide a facade for diversity; it’ll be up to everyone who runs anything dealing with entertainment. In order for there to be films to nominate, there have to be more films featuring non-white, non-male stories getting greenlit. There has to be more of a reliance on the now and less of a reliance on, as some members intimated, an “I’m not racist” card just because they might have participated in the Civil Rights Movement in some way.
This gets to my last point: Right before writing this, I read this tweet:
So many ppl speak on racism w/o having ever studied it. They are far more concerned w not being called racist than actually fighting racism.
— Talib Kweli Greene (@TalibKweli) January 24, 2016
I think that’s true for many things, and it’s definitely true for this. Everyone who has had their feelings hurt by #OscarsSoWhite is quick to say “I’m not a racist.” The Academy’s changes aren’t fearful for some just because it’s change; the changes are being met with fear because some of these people know that there’s more they could have done to prevent this nominations fiasco in the first place. Like what Walden said, if half of the members who didn’t view Straight Outta Compton and Beasts of No Nation actually watched the films instead of writing them off as niche, then the nominations card would look completely different. Basically, I personally think many of the ones crying foul are actually crying out because of their guilt. Who wants to own up to the fact that they might have had a damaging, insidious bias in their voting when they thought they were voting strictly on talent?
Some folks in the Academy are, if going by their statements (especially the anonymous ones) harbor clear racist sentiments. Others are ill-informed and don’t even understand the implications of what they’re saying. Others are still holding onto the good (or guilt-easing actions) they did in the ’60s to justify “voting on talent” today. But there are others up and down in the Academy who believe these changes are good for the organization and that, sadly, they are necessary. I think so, too. These changes shouldn’t have had to be implemented, but Hollywood is nothing but a reflection of society. If we all want a seat at the table–the Academy, Hollywood or otherwise–then the table has to be retrofitted or completely remodeled to accommodate. Cheryl Boone Isaacs has taken the first step towards a remodel, and now the rest of Hollywood has to follow suit. Create more films for all minorities, not just black people. We need more LGBT stories, more Asian stories, more Middle Eastern stories, more Native American stories, and more biracial/multiracial stories. We need stories of all types, including those I might have missed mentioned here.
Rampling asked why there need to be labels; little does she know that it’s the society she participates in that created those labels. If we had more stories of all types, and if those stories were valued on the same level playing field, then the negative, segregationist thinking that comes with these labels, would go away and the labels would just be mere descriptors, not assessments of a person’s entire being.
Diverse film alert time, friends! With Sundance happening as we speak, there’s a lot of news about films right now; some I hope we get to see in the theaters very soon. There’s also a short created by a friend to the site that you have to see if you want something funny to alleviate your Snowstorm Jonas misery. Here you go:
Comedy short Password Deals, written and directed by Blind Date Rules‘ Brie Eley. Starring Eley, fellow 4Play Comedy LA members Larisa Peters and Amy Rose Schumacher, and Winston A. Marshall. Sketch about a world in which passwords to streaming content, not drugs, are the hot commodity in the streets.
Comedy short film Darby Forever, starring and created by Saturday Night Live‘s Aidy Bryant. Short released as part of Vimeo’s new initiative Share the Screen, which will give voice to female filmmakers lacking a space in Hollywood. Vimeo states of the initiative, “When diverse voices are given equal consideration and weight, more informed artistic decisions are made, better stories are told.”
“Pioneers of African American Cinema” to show rare “race films” of the 1930s and 1040s during February and March. Event is flagship of Kickstarter’s Film Preservation and Restoration Initiative (in conjunction with Kino Lorber).
Films from Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY, Ayanda and Out of My Hand come to Netflix
“Out of My Hand” Official Trailer from TELEVISION on Vimeo.
Race
Heartbeats:
Myriad Pictures, Das Films and Bowery Hills Entertainment announced today that professional dancer Krystal Ellsworth who has danced in films Fame & Iron Man 2, rising South Indian star Amitash Pradhan(Vella Illa Pattathari), Paul McGillion (TOMORROWLAND, “Stargate Atlantis”) and Daphne Zuniga (“One Tree Hill”) headline the cast of the dance film HEARTBEATS, which is written and directed by Duane Adler [creator of Step Up]. Justin Chon (“Twilight” franchise) and Indian familiars Salman Yussuf Khan (of #1 Indian dance franchise ABCD), Kishori Shahane and Mohan Kapur round out the cast. “Inside Edition’s” Megan Alexander makes a cameo appearance. The film has just commenced production in Mumbai, India.
HEARTBEATS tells the story of Kelli (Ellsworth), a feisty female American hip hop dancer who travels to India with her parents (McGillion and Zuniga) for a week long Indian wedding and falls in love — both with a new style of dance and with a determined young man who introduces it to her (Pradhan).
The theme of the film is about two worlds colliding and will be Adler’s second movie with a bi-racial romance since SAVE THE LAST DANCE which starred Julia Stiles. Adler also wrote and created the worldwide box office smash hit dance movies STEP UP, STEP UP 2, and most recently wrote and directed the dance movie MAKE YOUR MOVE for Lionsgate.
HEARTBEATS is being produced by Sriram Das (NOVEMBER MAN), Andrea Chung (SEOUL SEARCHING), and Karine Martin (MAINA). Myriad Pictures is selling international rights to the project in Berlin, with Myriad’s Kirk D’Amico executive producing.
The film is being co-financed by Dance Network, whose founder Julie Stadler and CEO Brian Williams will serve as Executive Producers. Recently, Dance Network acquired and launched Skyway Studios in Nashville.
Jay-Z’s Roc Nation is producing the original songs alongside composer Gingger Shankar (Academy Award® nominee for THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST); the soundtrack will feature traditional and current Indian music and American hip-hop and R&B. 2015 Emmy Winning choreographer for “Dancing With the Stars,” Tessandra Chavez, is the supervising choreographer and two-time Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa winner Shampa Gopikrishna is the choreographer for the Indian dancing.
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Miles Ahead
.@IamDonCheadle's @MilesAheadFilm plays tonite at @sundancefest. Watch previous pics & clips https://t.co/Hnvjj35kn7 pic.twitter.com/56wuiny6Xq
— Wilson Morales (@blackfilm) January 22, 2016
Sleight
Seychelle and @jacoblatimore as Bo and Holly once again ruining a perfect picture of a tree. https://t.co/9InDPKuloW pic.twitter.com/u6xbcCZg1w
— SleightTheMovie (@SleightTheMovie) July 26, 2015
Sleight! 6:30 Monday thru Friday on TBS: Vaguely Funny. Like this post. https://t.co/5sgdTorKij pic.twitter.com/tGu1WTXWUL
— SleightTheMovie (@SleightTheMovie) July 26, 2015
Here’s @jacoblatimore as Bo. Hired for his acting skills/because he’s a for real warlock. https://t.co/lAD22PUX9a pic.twitter.com/cJaMNCBqFr
— SleightTheMovie (@SleightTheMovie) July 26, 2015
Morris From America
Morris From America is an understated, generous film. @BilgeEbiri reviews from #Sundance: https://t.co/Izj3PHAOcF pic.twitter.com/etofqKSsbl
— Vulture (@vulture) January 23, 2016
Embrace the Serpent
‘Embrace the Serpent’ Is a Violent, Psychedelic Film about the Colonization of the Amazon
Are you going to give any of these films a shot? Write your thoughts below!
Quentin Tarantino has said a mouthful in his New York Times Style Magazine interview with American Psycho author Bret Eaton Ellis. In short, he’s made much of whom he considers his demographic, black people, upset. As they should be.
One of the coolest events is happening in Los Angeles tomorrow (Sat. Aug. 29) called the Blackout Music & Film Festival. The event, which will take place primarily at the GRAMMY Museum at L.A. Live, will feature tons of entertainment, but also a socially conscious message of awareness and activism.
You know what this is—it’s in the title. Let’s get into it. Two to three weeks worth of news! (silently crying inside at how deceptively hard these types of posts are):