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The Newark Black Film Festival (NBFF), celebrating its 35th Anniversary as one of the nation's defining voices on behalf of independent film, opens in Newark with adult screenings beginning on Wednesday, June 24, with a six-week run ending on July 29.
Youth Cinema will be held on Mondays at the Newark Public Library starting on June 29, and at the Newark Museum on Wednesdays beginning July 1.
The festival is a showcase for films that focus on the experiences and concerns of contemporary African Americans, as well as an outlet for films about the African American experience from earlier eras. The six-week festival is free to the public and provides emerging filmmakers, writers, directors and producers with a high profile outlet for their work.
The festival features the Paul Robeson Awards in 2010, a biennial competition established in 1985. The Robeson Awards honor the spirit of Paul Robeson—renowned activist, scholar, performer and athlete. Applications will be available in fall of 2009.
The Newark Black Film Festival also repeats in Trenton, NJ, Thursdays at 6 pm:
New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, NJ—609-292-6464
 June 24 7 pm Newark Museum
June 25 6 pm NJ State Museum
AN AFRO-CENTRIC TWILIGHT ZONE
Cosmic Slop – A Trilogy
This Hudlin Bros.' Afro-centric Twilight Zone-inspired trilogy Cosmic Slop celebrates its 15th anniversary at the festival. It is a three-part anthology combining science fiction, the supernatural and topical social issues. In Space Traders aliens offer solutions to the United States' problems in exchange for all African-Americans. The country has five days to decide. In The First Commandment, a young Catholic priest is torn between church doctrine and his congregation, which believes that the statue of a saint is both a Catholic and Afro-Cuban deity. His faith is tested when the statue comes to life and performs miracles. In Tang a woman with an abusive boyfriend receives a package containing instructions for the "revolution". A special thanks to HBO Video. 1994, 83 minutes
Speaker: Warrington Hudlin, Filmmaker and founder of dvrepublic.org
Host: Gloria H. Buck and Dr. Clement A. Price, NBFF Charter Members
 July 1 7 pm Newark Museum
July 2 6 pm NJ State Museum
THE CONTINENT UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL
This is My Africa
This award-winning documentary has been described "a 50-minute crash course in African culture." It chronicles a unique journey into an Africa that many may not know about, with recollections by writers and artists on food, books, art, music and film. 2008, 50 minutes
Speaker: Zina Saro-Wiwa, Writer/Filmmaker/Director
Hosts: Gloria H. Buck and Akili Buchanan
Come early for a 5:45 pm Reception and Viewing of Party Time: Re-Imagine America, A Centennial Commission by Yinka Shonibare MBE, who is featured in the film.
Promptly RSVP by calling 973-596-6550 or rsvp@newarkmuseum.org.
 July 8 7 pm Newark Museum
July 9 6 pm NJ State Museum
TO BE YOUNG, GIFTED, BLACK AND SAFE
Dreams Deferred: The Sakia Gunn Film Project
In 2003, 15-year-old Sakia Gunn was brutally murdered on the streets of Newark because she dared to be herself: a young, Black lesbian. Taken from her world, her friends and her family before her life truly began, Sakia's story has only begun to be told. Her story demands attention and compassion, not just for Sakia, but for all of the young Black women and men who pay the price of intolerance, shame, hate and silence. 2008, 58 minutes
Speakers: Charles B. Brack, Producer/Director and Jane Dowell-Burton, Newark-Essex Pride Coalition
Hosts: Ralph R. Waller and Tynesha McHarris
 July 15 7 pm NJ Institute of Technology
July 16 6 pm NJ State Museum
WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT?
Medicine for Melancholy
A love story of bikes and one-night stands is told through the eyes of two twenty-something urbanites in search of self-definition. Barry Jenkins' award-winning independent film redefines the date movie, giving it new life, new edge and a brand new soul. 2008, 88 minutes
Speaker: Barry Jenkins, Writer/Filmmaker
Hosts: Theodore T. Johnson and Anthony G. Clark
 July 22 7 pm Newark Museum
July 23 6 pm NJ State Museum
CASTING BOOKER T. WASHINGTON'S LONG SHADOW IN NJ
A Place Out of Time: The Bordentown School
This film examines a seventy-year period when America cared little about the education of African-Americans. New Jersey's Bordentown School stood out because it was an educational utopia that taught values, discipline and life skills to generations of African-American children. 2008, 60 minutes
Speaker: David Davidson, Producer/Filmmaker/Director
Hosts: LeRoy Henderson and Dr. Clement A. Price
A special tribute to historian Giles R. Wright Jr., and filmmakers Thomas C. Guy Jr. and St. Claire Bourne.
 July 29 7 pm Newark Museum
July 30 6 pm NJ State Museum
BIRTH OF A MYTH AND A NEARLY FORGOTTEN RESPONSE
Birth of a Nation (segments)
This classic 1915 silent film directed by D.W. Griffith was a cinematic breakthrough that was made at the expense of a believable historical narrative about American life before, during and especially after the Civil War. Its controversy is exceeded only by the damage it wrought to African American history and the understood role of the Ku Klux Klan in the history of the South. 1915, segments only
 Within Our Gates
This film by the pioneering black filmmaker and entrepreneur Oscar Micheaux is an early depiction of race and race relations in America during the formative years of Jim Crow and racial terrorism. It is considered a response to The Birth of a Nation, with a story focusing on an African American woman who travels north to help a minister raise funds in support of a school of impoverished black children. 1920, 79 minutes
Speaker: Donald Boyle, Author/Historian
Hosts: Richard Wesley and Dr. Miriam Petty
June 29 10:30 am The Newark Public Library
July 1 1 pm Newark Museum
Ages 4–12
Global Wonders
Children will learn about African-American culture in this interactive adventure, featuring a mix of animation, live-action footage and original songs. Discover the art of Horace Pippin, music of Louis Armstrong, achievements of Jackie Robinson and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and more. 56 minutes
July 6 10:30 am The Newark Public Library
July 8 1 pm Newark Museum
Ages 4–12
Chato and the Party Animals
Chato's friend, Novio Boy, has never had a birthday party, and doesn't know when his birthday is. So Chato, being a good friend decides to throw him one—a "pachanga," and everyone is invited—including you! 10 minutes
Incredible Voyage of Bill Pinkney
Narrated by Bill Cosby, this documentary tells the story of the first African-American to sail around the world, and Bill Pinkney's high seas adventures from Boston to Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, Brazil, South Africa, Tasmania and Uruguay. 45 minutes
July 13 10:30 am The Newark Public Library
July 15 1 pm Newark Museum
Ages 4–12
I Lost My Tooth in Africa
Story of a young girl who loses a tooth while visiting her father's family in Africa. In the African tradition, the girl places the tooth under a gourd and, in return, gets two chickens from the Tooth Fairy. Emmy Award-winning PBS children's series, Reading Rainbow. 30 minutes
Lincoln and Douglass
In celebration of Abraham Lincoln's 200th birthday in February 2009, we present this story of the unusual friendship between two great American leaders. At a time when racial tensions were high and racial equality was not yet established, Lincoln and Douglass formed a strong bond over shared ideals. 12 minutes
An Apple for Harriet Tubman
Children will learn about the life of Harriet Tubman, including the significance of apples for this remarkable American. The program follows Tubman's life from the hardships that she endured as a child slave through her escape to freedom and her legendary role as a conductor on the Underground Railroad to her life as a freewoman in upstate New York. 12 minutes
July 20 10:30 am The Newark Public Library
July 22 1 pm Newark Museum
Ages 4–12
Cliques, Phonies & Other Baloney
This animated program offers helpful suggestions on how children can dare to be different, keep an open mind about others and remain true to themselves. 30 minutes
Garrett's Gift: The Story of Garrett Morgan
Narrated by Queen Latifah, this animated program tells the story of African-American inventor Garrett Morgan and his struggle to discover his talent. Years later, Garrett achieves his dreams as he introduces the world to his many wonderful inventions, including the traffic signal. 19 minutes
The Hunterman and the Crocodile
Traditional West African folktale about the importance of living in harmony with nature. 10 minutes
July 27 10:30 am The Newark Public Library
July 29 1 pm Newark Museum
Ages 5 & up
The Story of Ruby Bridges
Learn about six-year-old Ruby Bridges' difficult first months at an all-white elementary school in New Orleans. 12 minutes
The Lion's Drum
An African hunter discovers a lion playing a magic tree stump deep in the jungle and must convince the villagers of what he has seen and heard. 23 minutes
Obara & The Merchants
In this animated adaptation of the traditional Nigerian folktale, a powerful hunter returns home to find some unexpected dinner guests. 8 minutes
July 29 1 pm Newark Screens on Springfield Ave.
PG
The Longshots
True story of Jasmine Plummer (KeKe Palmer) who, at the age of eleven, became the first female to play in the Pop Warner football tournament in its 56-year history. 2007, 95 minutes
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