“Kemba” is a powerful film that’s currently streaming on BET+. Directed by Kelley Kali, the movie tells the true story of Kemba Smith, who, while in college, fell in love with a man, who unbeknownst to her, was also a drug kingpin.
This is the kind of news that makes creative people working in the film industry celebrate because Emmy-nominated producer Will Packer will produce the 94th Oscars. Academy President David Rubin made the announcement. It will be his first involvement with the Oscars, which will air live on ABC and broadcast outlets worldwide on Sunday, March 27, 2022.
“Will is a powerhouse producer who has enjoyed success across all movie genres. He’s already bringing a boundless energy and a focus on innovation to this year’s Oscars, to entertain the widest spectrum of fans. Many wonderful surprises ahead!” said Rubin and Academy CEO Dawn Hudson.
The Los Angeles Urban League Young Professionals (LAULYP) welcomes young entertainment executives, marketing gurus, and bloggers to The Future of the Industry Entertainment Summit October 5-6 at Evolve Project LA.
The facts don’t lie but it’s only been a recent shift that Hollywood brass has started to really listen. Insiders know the drill. Black has been on trend many times and then it fizzled out as if it never existed at all. Halle Berry spoke her truth; so to speak when former Teen Vogue editor-in-chief Elaine Welteroth interviewed her about her Oscar win (2002 win for “Monster’s Ball”).
The Pan African Film & Arts Festival announced that it will celebrate its 27th Annual Opening Night with a screening of Aretha Franklin’s cherished Amazing Grace concert documentary at the Directors Guild of America. The festival, which presents an impressive slate of over 170 new Black films from the US and around the world and exhibits more than 100 fine artists and unique craftspeople, starts on Thursday, February 7 through Monday, February 18 at the Cinemark Rave 15 Theatres (3650 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd) and the adjacent Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza in Los Angeles, California. Aretha Franklin’s spine-tingling and uplifting Amazing Grace, produced by Alan Elliott, was originally directed by Sydney Pollack in 1972 at New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles, California. The film, a rare gem in the crown of the late musical genius, has not been seen before now due to technical and rights issues.
A careful variety of HCBU alumni from the 1940s through the ’70s peppered the storytelling with first hand accounts or their experiences of protest, death and celebration.
Under writer/director David E. Talbert’s guidance, you know there will be equal doses of merriment and inspirational message. Toss in producer Will Packer’s sensibility and you can pile on the silliness and bawdy humor.