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Black Debutantes
Rógan Graham curates this collection of early works by Black women directors.
This collection celebrates the Black Women and femme filmmakers past and present whose remarkable work and reverberating impact is oftentimes underseen and under discussed.
Several of the featured filmmakers, such as Ayoka Chenzira and Bridgett M. Davis, have only made one traditional feature throughout their careers, but their powerful voices and unique perspectives nevertheless remain as fresh and relevant as ever. Recurring themes of love, motherhood, ancestral trauma, the relationship to one’s body, racial violence and filmmaking itself, all emerge from these remarkable early films in a range of genres, from coming-of-age comedies to dystopian epics and contemporary independents.
- Rógan Graham, curator
Naked ActsNaked Acts
Drama199688 minsDirector: Bridgett M. Davis
Bridgett M. Davis’s comedy about an aspiring young Black actress who lands her first major role, but there’s a big problem: it requires a nude scene.
Alma's RainbowAlma's Rainbow
Comedy199389 minsDirector: Ayoka Chenzira
Ayoka Chenzira’s vital coming-of-age comedy about three Black women living in Brooklyn learning to embrace life and exercise their agency.
Welcome II the TerrordomeWelcome II the Terrordome
Drama199594 minsDirector: Ngozi Onwurah
A ferocious dystopian nightmare, this was the first film directed by a Black British woman to receive a UK theatrical release.
Gone Too Far!Gone Too Far!
Comedy201488 minsDirector: Destiny Ekaragha
Riotous urban comedy adapted from the hit Royal Court play, about a Peckham teen affronted by the arrival of his long-lost Nigerian sibling.
Losing GroundLosing Ground
Drama198286 minsDirector: Kathleen Collins
A philosophy professor and an artist reach a crisis point in their marriage, in Kathleen Collins’ groundbreaking masterpiece.
The Cruz Brothers and Miss MalloyThe Cruz Brothers and Miss Malloy
Drama197949 minsDirector: Kathleen Collins
Kathleen Collins’ debut feature about three brothers tasked with renovating an elderly woman’s mansion so she can host one last party before she dies.
