Underground Railroad film & discussion series returns!

SEPTEMBER 16 SAFE HOUSE SCREENING: Two films featuring Afro-Ururguyan people and culture
Wednesday, September 16, 7:00 PM
Location: Central Cinema - $5.00 admission
1411 21st Avenue (21st Avenue & Union Street), Central Seattle

CANDOMBE
Directed by Rafael Deugenio
16 minutes.Spanish with English subtitles.

More than two hundred years ago, there was an influx into Uruguay of slaves from Africa whom, after being freed, continued to make up the poorest and most marginalized strata in society. Fernado Nunez, a Black man, a musician, and a maker of drums, sees himself as the heir to "Candombe", an important social and cultural legacy from his slave forefathers. The official history and culture of Uruguay, on the other hand, which has never acknowledged this contribution to the degree which it deserves, continues to marginalize expressions of Black culture. Fernando Nunez and his friends from the Barrio Sur back street quarter of Montevideo have decided to fight to keep these important cultural roots alive in the consciousness of the Uruguayan people.

followed by

A DIOS MOMO
Uruguay, 2005



Directed by Leonardo Ricagni. Starring Jorge Esmoris, Mathias Acuna, and Washington Luna.
100 minutes.Spanish with English subtitles.

Obdulio is an 11-year-old Afro-Uruguayan street boy who lives with his grandmother and sells newspapers for a living while he cannot read or write. Obdulio is not interested in going to school until he finds out that the night watchman of the newspaper's office is a charismatic magical "Maestro" who not only introduces him to the world of literacy but also teaches him the real meaning of life through the lyrics of the "Murgas" (Carnival Pierrots) during the mythical nights of the irreverent and provocative Uruguayan carnival.

With a poetic nod to Fellini, Leonardo Ricagni uses the carnival atmosphere to transport the viewer to a magical place where realism and surrealism live side by side in Uruguay—and what a wonderful place to be. With sweeping directorial vision and gorgeously shot with rich, vibrant colors, A DIOS MOMO achieves a rich visual and spiritual sensibility unparalleled today.

– Shaz Bennett AFI Fest 2005

Presented in celebration of the Seattle International Latino Film Festival, September 24-27, 2009.
The Seattle International Latino Film Festival aims to exhibit films that recognize the richness and diversity of Spanish speaking communities worldwide. The broad range of Latino cultural expression cannot be minimized to stereotypes.

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Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center Special Events

Summer Youth Musical

Bobos

Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center

104 - 17th Avenue South, Seattle

17th Avenue South & Yesler Way - Metro bus #27

Date: August 17 - 23

Quincy Jones, legendary composer arranger, says "...Bobos is the future of musical theatre." This urban opera deals with the tough choices facing youth in the streets of Seattle. Forty-Eight (48) youth fill this ensemble with vibrancy and difficult choices under peer pressure. Call 206-684-4758 for information.

2009 Festival News

Join us for nine days of thoughtful, inspiring and irreverent films featuring
filmmaker talkbacks, screenplay readings, workshops, panel chats and
provocative discussions –from across the aisle and across neighborhoods.

· Sixth Annual Langston Hughes African American Film Festival: Saturday April 18, 2009 - Sunday April 26, 2009

· Single Tickets Available March 30, 2009: Opening/Closing Night: $15;

Regular Showtimes: Adults: $7; Seniors: $5; Youth Under 16: $2.

· AVAILABLE NOW - “Langston Pass” All Festival Pass $75 at: www.brownpapertickets.com/event/59800

· Single tickets Available at www.BrownPaperTickets.com OR LHPAC Box Office.

· All screenings held at Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center: 104 17th Avenue South, Seattle, WA.

· Updated film details, schedule and information is available at www.langstonblackfilmfest.org

or by calling 206-326-1088.

· Check out the blog at http://lhaaffbside.blogspot.com/

For up to the minute festival updates Twitter: http://twitter.com/LHAAFF

Festival Highlights

· Celia the Queen- (West Coast Premiere) The story of the legendary Afro Cuban Diva Celia Cruz. Partnership with CineSeattle, the Seattle International Latino Film Festival – Closing night gala follows. www.celiathequeen.com

· Us: A Love Story- (Seattle Premiere) A beautiful and haunting allegory exploring the relationships between Blacks and Whites. Filmmaker Alrick Brown in attendance. www.usalovestory.com

· Prince of Broadway- (Seattle Premiere) Sean Baker’s award winning film showcases the underbelly of the wholesale fashion district through the eyes of Lucky and Levon; two immigrant men struggling to confront what is real and what is fake. www.princeofbroadway.com

· Hip Hop Film Mini-fest. Features B-Girl Be and 206 Zulu by local filmmaker Georgio Brown and Masizake: Building Each Other by local filmmaker Scott Macklin.

· Carmen and Geoffrey- (Seattle Premiere) An intertwined video history that explores the devoted relationship of dancers Geoffrey Holder and Carmen De Lavallade.

· 13th Amendment-(Seattle Premiere) This documentary short follows a 90-year-old great-great-grandmother on her trek to vote for Barack Obama in the 2008 Pennsylvania primary. Having voted all her life, this is her first opportunity to vote for a black man for President of the United States.

· Production (Seattle premiere) - Danielle's job as script coordinator for a popular TV drama changes when the producers plan to shoot an ill-conceived "urban" episode.

NOVEMBER 20 – AKIRA’S HIP HOP SHOP and ELI’S LIQUOR STORE

African American and Asian American interactions

NOVEMBER 20 – AKIRA’S HIP HOP SHOP and ELI’S LIQUOR STORE
Time: 7PM
Location: Hidmo Eritrean Cuisine, 2000 South Jackson Street
Admission: Suggested donation of $5.00


AKIRA’S HIP-HOP SHOP 37 mins. (special public screening of the director’s cut!) 37 mins.
Written and directed by Joe Doughrity Akira’s Hip Hop Shop stars James Kyson Lee (”Heroes”) and Emayatzy Corinealdi (”The Young & the Restless”). An interracial love story about a Japanese immigrant in love with hip hop who meets a young Black woman with a passion for Asian cuisine and culture.
Winner - Best Director, Director's Guild of America Awards 2007


screened with


ELI’S LIQUOR STORE 16 mins.
Written and directed by Arnold Chun and Alonzo Jones . Co-produced by Yealee Song and Joseph H. Shim.

A poignant story set in Los Angeles’ Koreatown circa 1999. It’s the story of Elijah Gooden, a 43-year-old African-American man from Atlanta, Georgia. He graduated from Georgia Tech University and worked in corporate America before moving his family to Los Angeles to start his own business. He and his family experience culture shock and adversity as they struggle to build their livelihood in an area dominated by Asian-American business owners.

Post screening discussion featuring Julie Chang Schulman
Northwest Regional Coordinator for Hip Hop Congress

....
Film Makers Bio:

Joseph Doughrity (”Joe D.”) is a writer, producer, and director. The son of an educator, Joe grew up an avid reader and developed hobbies ranging from sports to comics, videogames, and a fascination with Japanese culture. His first job in Hollywood was as a Production Assistant on John Singleton’s debut film “Boyz N the Hood”. This was the start of a five-year collaboration with the Oscar nominated director including serving as his personal assistant on the films “Poetic Justice” and “Higher Learning”.

Joe recognized the significance of the Internet early and worked in the dotcom industry beginning in 1999 as a Content Provider for new media startup Psylum, Incorporated. When Psylum was purchased by USA Networks’ Sci-fi Channel, Joe was chosen to re-launch the Psycomic website and recruited iconic filmmaker Kevin Smith (”Clerks”) to write a weekly column that became the basis of his book Kevin Smith Speaks. Psycomic became a leading destination on the Internet for fans of comic books and graphic novels. He continues to work on the web serving as the Video Editor for PopCultureShock.com, a leading news, review, and interview site focusing on comics, movies and videogames.

Joe has written and edited for comic books (for Caliber Press, publishers of The Crow and U.N. Force), magazines (The Source, Rappages, Straight From the Lip), and motion pictures (see partial credits below). As a documentarian, he created electronic press kits for the urban romance “Jason’s Lyric” and Tony Bill’s “A Home of our Own”. Joe’s “Seven Days in Japan”, a documentary he wrote, produced and directed, won Best Documentary at the 2005 San Diego Comic-con Film Festival beating out films which cost ten times its modest budget. “Seven Days in Japan” went on to screen at the Pacific Media Expo and premiered on cable’s BET-Jazz channel in February of 2007.

As a screenwriter, Joe has written for studios and production companies such as HBO (”Wheels of Steel: The KRS One/Scott La Rock Story”), Mandalay Films (”Grandmaster Flash”) and New Line Cinema. His recent scripts include “Motown Miracle: Soul on Ice”, the true story of a Black hockey team from his native Detroit, “Cornerstore”, a day in the life look at a liquor store, and “Akira’s Hip hop Shop”, an interracial romantic dramedy about an Asian man and a Black woman.

Joseph received his BFA from Columbia College-Hollywood where he majored in Cinema Studies. He is a member of the Writers Guild of America.

Explore Afro-Uruguyan culture at stop #2 of the Underground Railroad Film Series

Show date: Thursday , October 18, 7:00 p.m. Location: Rainier Community Center
4600 38th Ave. South . Suggested $5 donation at the door.

CANDOMBE
Directed by Rafael Deugenio
16 minutes.Spanish with English subtitles.
More than two hundred years ago, there was an influx into Uruguay of slaves from AfricaPublish Post whom, after being freed, continued to make up the poorest and most marginalized strata in society. Fernado Nunez, a Black man, a musician, and a maker of drums, sees himself as the heir to "Candombe", an important social and cultural legacy from his slave forefathers. The official history and culture of Uruguay, on the other hand, which has never acknowledged this contribution to the degree which it deserves, continues to marginalize expressions of Black culture. Fernando Nunez and his friends from the Barrio Sur back street quarter of Montevideo have decided to fight to keep these important cultural roots alive in the consciousness of the Uruguayan people.

followed by

ADIOS MOMO (Goodbye Momo)
Directed by Leonardo Ricagni. Starring Jorge Esmoris, Mathias Acuna, and Washington Luna.
100 minutes.Spanish with English subtitles.

Obdulio is an 11-year-old Afro-Uruguayan street boy who lives with his grandmother and sells newspapers for a living while he cannot read or write. Obdulio is not interested in going to school until he finds out that the night watchman of the newspaper's office is a charismatic magical "Maestro" who not only introduces him to the world of literacy but also teaches him the real meaning of life through the lyrics of the "Murgas" (Carnival Pierrots) during the mythical nights of the irreverent and provocative Uruguayan carnival.

With a poetic nod to Fellini, Leonardo Ricagni uses the carnival atmosphere to transport the viewer to a magical place where realism and surrealism live side by side in Uruguay—and what a wonderful place to be. With sweeping directorial vision and gorgeously shot with rich, vibrant colors, A DIOS MOMO achieves a rich visual and spiritual sensibility unparalleled today. – Shaz Bennett AFI Fest 2005

KILLER OF SHEEP special theatrical run - partnership with the NW Film Forum

The Langston Hughes African American Film Festival is pleased to partner with the Northwest Film Forum for a special anniversary presentation of African American filmmaker Charles Burnett's classic film, KILLER OF SHEEP.

Special thanks to our June 23rd guest panelists, who conducted a lively and interesting post-screening discussion:

• Dr. Angela Gilliam - anthropologist, author, and professor at Evergreen State College
• Eddie Hill - filmmaker and producer
• Sandra D. Jackson-Dumont - Deputy Director of Education and Public Programs, Seattle Art Museum

JUNE 29-JULY 1, Fri - Sun at 9:15 PM and JULY 2, 3, 5 (Mon, Tues, Thurs) at 7 & 9:15 PM

30th ANNIVERSARY SCREENING / NEW 35MM PRINT

NWFF and Langston Hughes African American Film Festival present

KILLER OF SHEEP

(Charles Burnett, USA, 1977, 35mm, 96min)

At last, one of the most important independent and African-American films of the 20th Century has found a distributor. This underground gem, by director Charles Burnett, was placed among the first fifty films entered in the National Film Registry and declared a national treasure. In 2002, the National Society of Film Critics selected the film as one of the "100 Essential Films" of all time. Due to music licensing complications, the film was rarely screened and even then on worn 16mm prints. KILLER OF SHEEP has now been fully restored for its 30th anniversary. Witness its frank, neo-realistic depiction of black life in Los Angeles' Watts neighborhood in the mid-70s as the film follows Stan from his job at a slaughterhouse to his life at home. Constantly frustrated by money troubles, he manages to find solace in simple pleasures fixing up an old car, slow dancing with his wife in the kitchen, or quietly holding his daughter.

"The highest example of contemporary black life put on cinema." -Armond White, Film Comment

"The film of the season, if not the year, is a Southern California slice-of-life from 1977 that hasn't aged a day... A stirring and sophisticated evocation of working-class Watts." -Nathan Lee, The Village Voice

"Free of ghetto cliches that fill the movies made by people who have never lived in one, KILLER OF SHEEP is a strongly individual portrait of black, working class America." -Seattle P-I

"Burnett uses the film language of experimental documentaries for his urban pastoral--an episodic series of scenes that are sweet, sardonic, deeply sad, and very funny." -Seattle Weekly

You may watch a video of the discussion panel here. Special thanks to Paul Jackson, videographer for this event!

On another note...our belated, but deeply sincere, thanks to everyone who attended this year's LHAAFF! We appreciate our audiences and look forward to welcoming you in 2008 for our 5th anniversary. We're planning more workshops for aspiring and experienced filmmakers, more repeat screenings of hard-to-find films, and a special 5th anniversary opening night event. Ticket and pass prices will remain affordable. We want the LHAAFF to remain an accessible, welcoming community events. Thank you, audiences and friends, for your support and enthusiasm!

Join us again at the the NW Film Forum in August 2007 for THE TRIALS OF DARRYL HUNT, a gripping documentary about the death penalty, justice, and perceptions of race and crime in America.

UPDATE: Corrected bio for S. Pearl Sharp, April 29 guest filmmaker

The LHAAFF regrets that an incorrect bio was published in the print version of the program book. Guest filmmaker S. Pearl Sharp will present her acclaimed documentary THE HEALING PASSAGE: VOICES FROM THE WATER on Sunday, April 29 at 1:00 PM. Admission is $7.00. A correct version of the bio follows:

S. Pearl Sharp's work focuses on cultural arts, health and Black history. An
independent filmmaker, she created the semi-animated film short Picking Tribes, with watercolors by artist Carlos Spivey; Life Is A Saxophone, on poet Kamau Daa'ood; a controversial women's health video, It's O.K. To Peek, produced with Arabella Chavers-Julien; and Back Inside Herself, a poetic short. S. Pearl wrote and directed numerous arts documentaries for the City of Los Angeles' CH 35, with Exec. Producer Rosie Lee Hooks, including Central Avenue Live!, L.A. to L.A., Spirits of the Ancestors and Fertile Ground: Stories From the Watts Towers Arts Center. She is Supervising Producer for five new short films addressing gang violence, sponsored by the Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center (BHERC). Sharp’s most recent work is The Healing Passage/Voices From The Water, an award-winning, feature length documentary that addresses the present-day residuals of the trans-Atlantic slave trade through the work of cultural artists.

S. Pearl writes "soft songs, hard poems and 3rd eye music." Her essays and
commentaries are heard on NPR radio, and she is the current Poet Laureate
of the Watts Towers Arts Center. Her published literary works include Black Women For Beginners (Writers and Readers), the plays Dearly Beloved and The Sistuhs, four volumes of poetry and a spoken word CD, On The Sharp Side. She worked with esteemed actress Beah Richards on There's A Brown Girl In The Ring, a collection of the actress' essays, later adapting them to stage.

Based in Los Angeles, S. Pearl is both a practitioner and student of holistic healing. www.aSharpShow.com

...

About the film:

How do we heal from the residuals of The Middle Passage?Cultural artists, along with historians and healers, look at present day behavior that is connected to the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. For more than 300 years Africans were carried from their homeland, across the Atlantic Ocean ("The Middle Passage"), into chattel slavery in the Americas and the Caribbean. The residual impact of this African Holocaust still reverberates in the world today through psychological trauma, genetic memory, personal and community consciousness. The artists use music, dolls, dance, altars, spoken word, visual art and ritual to create paths to healing.
With commentary by historian Dr. Yosef A. A. ben-Jochannan (Dr. Ben), Goree Island curator Boubacar Joseph Ndiaye, health professionals Lola Kemp and Dr. Olivia Cousins, and Maafa Conference founder Rev. Dr. Johnny Ray Youngblood. And the artistry of actress CCH Pounder, Brother Yusef the Bluesman, bassist Nedra Wheeler, writer/singer Shonda Buchannan (Nyesha Khalfani), doll maker Angela Briggs, visual artists Ra6 and Abbey Onikoyi and others.

AFROPUNK director James Spooner returns to Seattle tonight, April 28!

Don't miss tonight's rare opportunity! The LHAAFF welcomes back AFROPUNK director, James Spooner, with this special presentation of a festival version of his forthcoming feature, WHITE LIES, BLACK SHEEP about a young Black man and his struggles with identity and integration in Manhattan's club/punk scene. Post-screening Q&A with director James Spooner. Admission is $7.

Long Lunch Matinee #2

FRIDAY, APRIL 27
...
12:30 PM: LONG LUNCH MATINEE $7 / $2 age 12 and under
AMERICAN RED & BLACK: STORIES OF AFRO-NATIVE IDENTITY
This moving documentary follows Vella, a self-identified African-American, as she researches and reflects on her Native American heritage. People of African American and Native American family backgrounds share their personal perspectives on Native American and African interactions, past & present. Director: Alicia Woods (local). 39 min.

THROUGH MARTHA'S EYES
Historical drama about a female slave's experiences at an Indian Mission school in "Bloody Kansas", 1856. The storyline alludes to the deadly battles over slave/free territory during this painful period of American history. Seattle premiere. The film will be aired in selected PBS markets across the USA this autumn. Director: Chuck Cranston. 42 min.

THE HARDEST PART
Short and sweet, this NYC drama about friendship and first love features a then-unknown Seth Gilliam (The Wire). Film by Mike D. (Mike Dennis) of ReelBlack, Philadephia. 11 min.

UNCLE TOM'S APARTMENT (rough cut)
Two abandoned White children appeal to their Black godfather for help. Directed by Portland, OR-based filmmaker David Walker, who is in Seattle to present this and his Blaxploitation documentary. 80 min.

Exciting local films - NAKED LIFE with guest Malik Isasis

Greetings!

The festival is in full swing with five more powerhouse days of Black cinema. Click here to download a full schedule of events. The rest of the week is packed full with wonderful films that you do not want to miss!

Tonight, young people take over the screen as the festival presents films by for and about youth. Reel Grrls is a unique after school media and technology training program that empowers girls to be critical media consumers and effective media users. This afternoon, the Reel Grrls will be on hand to screen SWIIRL, Hair Piece, Made up Of and Breaking the Cycle.
This after-school screening will also feature other youth made shorts from across the country. 5:00 PM - Admission $2 for adult and youth.

Our 7:30 PM evening feature brings local filmmaker, Malik Isasis to the festival to showcase his hauntingly beautiful film, Naked Life. Ben and Francesca have enjoyed a safe, stable relationship for 12 years, but when Francesca finds herself falling out of love their world begins to disintegrate. Shot in Seattle and Berlin, this film and the filmmaker are truly a gift to Seattle's film community.
Malik is a thoughtful film artist who has made 9 feature length films in and around Seattle over the past few years. He has provided opportunities for countless film industry creatives to practice the art and the craft of filmmaking. Malik is a brother on the rise. Tonight will be his last screening in Seattle before he moves to New York City.

Come out tonight so that you can say, "Oh yeah, I remember seeing some of his earlier works."

Naked Life is preceded by NYC filmmaker Trevor Parham's short, Look Right.