African-American

Displaying 1–21 of 21 items
Aya of Yop City

Aya of Yop City

Animated · African-American

Against the colorful and spirited backdrop of the Ivory Coast in the 1970s, Aya of Yop City is a vibrant, beautifully animated film. From teen romance to parental tribulations, it offers a rare glimpse into the daily lives of Africans, and is adapted from a best-selling series of graphic novels.

The Changin' Times of Ike White

The Changin' Times of Ike White

Music · Documentary · African-American

Serving a life sentence for murder in the early 1970s, music prodigy Ike White had plenty of time to perfect his musical talent, but no hope of putting it to use in the outside world. Ike's skills were exceptional enough, though, that his story captured the media's attention. From this notoriety, he…

Clockers

Clockers

Crime · Mystery · African-American

A “clocker” is a 24-hour drug dealer, and Strike is the hardest-working one on the streets. But for Strike, time is running out. When the local drug kingpin tips Strike off about an opportunity for advancement, a rival dealer ends up dead, and Strike suddenly finds himself caught between…

Crooklyn

Crooklyn

Drama · Comedy · African-American

Semi-autobiographical portrait of a school teacher, her stubborn jazz musician husband and their five kids living in Brooklyn in 1973.

Fela Kuti: "Music is the Weapon"

Fela Kuti: "Music is the Weapon"

Music & Dance · Music Documentaries · African-American

Shot in Lagos at the peak of his career in 1982, this documentary contains interviews with Fela detailing his thoughts on politics, Pan-Africanism, music and religion. For all who wish to know more about an artist at the heart of African musical history, FELA KUTI: MUSIC IS THE WEAPON is an essentia…

Finding Fela

Finding Fela

Music & Dance · Sundance Film Festival · Art Documentaries

Directed by Alex Gibney, this is the story of Fela Anikulapo Kuti's life, his music, his social and political importance and how his impact transformed the life of many Nigerians and rights activists throughout the world.

Flex is Kings

Flex is Kings

Music & Dance · Art Documentaries · African-American

Flex is Kings is a riveting and awe-inspiring look inside the world of Brooklyn street dancing known as flexing. Directors Michael Beach Nichols and Deidre Schoo take audiences along on the emotional journey of several young dancers; dancers who vie for a chance to make something of themselves by ba…

Ganja & Hess

Ganja & Hess

National Film Registry · Vampires · African-American

Flirting with the conventions of blaxploitation and horror, Bill Gunn’s revolutionary independent film Ganja & Hess is a highly stylized and utterly original treatise on sex, religion, and African American identity.

Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project

Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project

Documentary · African-American

A look at the life of poet, Nikki Giovanni and the revolutionary historical periods through which she lived, from the Civil Rights Movement to Black Lives Matter.

Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami

Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami

African-American · Music Documentaries · Documentary

This electrifying journey through the public and private worlds of pop culture mega-icon Grace Jones contrasts musical sequences with intimate personal footage, all the while brimming with Jones’s bold aesthetic.

Jungle Fever

Jungle Fever

Drama · Romance · African-American

African American architect Flipper Purify begins an affair with his working-class Italian American secretary, Angie Tucci, which causes them to be scrutinized by their friends, cast out from their families and shunned by their neighbors.

King: A Filmed Record...Montgomery to Memphis

King: A Filmed Record...Montgomery to Memphis

National Film Registry · Academy Award Nominees · Historic Drama

King: A Filmed Record...from Montgomery to Memphis is the landmark 3-hr documentary that chronicles the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., from the beginnings of the Civil Rights movement in Montgomery, Alabama, and culminating with his assassination in Memphis in 1968. Academy Award nomi…

Liberty Kid

Liberty Kid

American Independent · African-American

LIBERTY KID captures with compassion and street-smart humor the spirit and pain of America transformed by 9-11. Two young friends struggle to survive after losing their jobs at the Statue of Liberty tourist site due to 9/11. Director Ulya Chaiken "makes us feel for her characters" (NY Post), and evo…

Lost in the Stars

Lost in the Stars

Theatre · African-American

Lost in the Stars transforms Alan Paton's world-famous novel of racial oppression, Cry the Beloved Country, into a tragic and beautiful film musical unlike any you've ever seen. Gilded by Maxwell Anderson's lucid lyrics and Kurt Weill's (The Three Penny Opera) powerful music, and guided by Daniel Ma…

Mo' Better Blues

Mo' Better Blues

Drama · Romance · African-American

A talented trumpeter has to come to the aid of his manager and childhood friend and finds his world more fragile than he ever imagined.

NAS: Time Is Illmatic

NAS: Time Is Illmatic

Music & Dance · Culture · Documentary

Time Is Illmatic is a feature length documentary film that delves deep into the making of Nas' 1994 debut album, Illmatic, and the social conditions that influenced its creation. Twenty years after its release, Illmatic has become a hip-hop benchmark that encapsulates the socio-political outlook, en…

Personal Problems

Personal Problems

Drama · African-American

This entirely African American-conceived and produced ensemble drama is the result of a collaboration of a pair of pioneering Black artists: writer Ishmael Reed and filmmaker Bill Gunn, who wrote and directed the underground classic Ganja & Hess and wrote the screenplay for Hal Ashby's The …

Pioneers of African-American Cinema

Pioneers of African-American Cinema

National Film Registry · Box Set · African-American

A monumental collection of historically vital films, digitally mastered in HD using archival elements. This collection of the works of America's legendary first African-American filmmakers is the only one of its kind with no fewer than a dozen feature-length films and nearly twice as many shorts and…

STOP

STOP

Politics · Documentary · African-American

STOP places the stop and frisk controversy in the context of a long history of civil rights, with profound implications for today's criminal justice system.

Uncle Tom's Cabin

Uncle Tom's Cabin

National Film Registry · African-American · Period Drama

Harriet Beecher Stowe's famous novelization of the harsh realities of slavery was a catalyst for the anti-slavery movement and remains a landmark in American literature. Seen today, the sincerity of director Harry Pollard's handsomely produced 1927 drama outweigh the conventions of its story. All to…

The Wound

The Wound

Drama · Sundance Film Festival · African-American

Brimming with sex and violence, John Trengove’s award-winning film is an exploration of tradition and sexuality set amid South Africa’s Xhosa culture.