The Hollywood Black Film Festival

The Hollywood Black Film Festival (HBFF) runs October 27 through 30 in Los Angeles, under the direction of executive director and founder, Tanya Kersey, along with Jacqueline Blaylock, head of programming.  More than 300 filmmakers from around the world submitted their works for consideration in this year’s showcase resulting in 51 films that were selected: nine features, 12 documentaries, 27 shorts and 3 student films.

I spoke with Kersey about this year’s anticipated event, always attended by Hollywood’s finest black talent--

Sandra Varner/Talk2SVQ:  This is the 11th year of HBFF, as its founder, what are your expectations for this year's veritable showcase of independent black film?

To continue to give Black filmmakers an opportunity to showcase their talents to an audience of film fans, distributors, agents, journalists, acquisition executives, actors, producers and directors.  

There are still so many untold stories and this year’s festival lineup features some inspiring and thought-provoking works from filmmakers from all over the world.  The smorgasbord of features, shorts, student films and documentaries well represent the diverse cinematic offerings that independent filmmakers have to share with the world.

We’re just happy to provide a platform for these amazing filmmakers to tell their stories and to give audiences a chance to see films they would otherwise not be able to see.   Think of it this way, in 4 days audiences will be able to enjoy 52 films –  from romantic and family dramas to comedies and action films -  that probably will never be shown in a theatre.  Black filmmakers are doing some amazing work and it’s our great pleasure to showcase them.

This year, we cut the festival down from six to four days because times are tough and we knew it was hard for people to take six days away from work, not including travel.  We wanted to be sensitive to the costs involved in attending a film festival.   By chopping two days off the festival, we’ve gone from 125 films two years ago to 52 films this year.  Now, we have a leaner festival featuring the very best of the best!  

I also think our move to the Sunset Strip will give us more visibility.  Our festival guests from out-of-town and out-of-the-country will really have an opportunity to experience “Hollywood.”  

This year’s Infotainment Conference and panels are more issue-oriented than in the past.  We wanted to reflect the challenges that filmmakers, writers, directors, producers and actors experience in their careers, and offered them real-life solutions and strategies for success.

We’ve got panels everything from social media marketing for filmmakers and how to develop and deliver content across multiple platforms, to how to find money in a challenging economy. Kicking off the conference is the Armed & Dangerous: How to Navigate Film Festivals, Markets & Trade Conferences panel which will discuss how to attend a film festival, market or trade conference and navigate them with an arsenal of tools and strategies so you leave with your hands full of deals, potential and future business and contacts.    

I’m really excited about the Powerbrokers Panel with high profile talent agent, Charles King from William Morris Endeavor, super attorney Matthew Johnson and producer Tracey Edmonds.  People are going to get an up-close-and-personal discussion with some of Hollywood’s high-powered executives who have made a name for themselves in the industry.

Tracy "Twinkie" Byrd’s  Cast Yourself "Monologue Slam" is going to be an American Idol/X-Factor-styled audition where actors will have a chance to show off their acting skills by performing a monologue of their choice in front of a panel of judges. Its being led by celebrity casting director, Tracy "Twinkie" Byrd of In the Twink of an Eye Casting (“Sparkle,” “Jumping the Broom”, “Notorious”).  The judges include director Jeff Byrd ("A Beautiful Soul, Jasper Texas, Seventeen Again"), “Jumping the Broom” producer Glendon Palmer, and acting coach Brooklyn McClinn.  

Q.  What is your observation about the current state of black independent film?

I think that there is much less opportunity for black filmmakers to get their films onto the big screen than there was say even 5 years ago.  Theatrical releases are more and more for an elite few and it is much harder to get a movie made.  The audience is so fragmented that unless its a mega-blockbuster film or the film has a very defined niche audience (like Tyler Perry’s loyal following), Hollywood really isn’t interested.  Tyler Perry alone is responsible for two of the half-dozen black films released theatrically each year, and Rainforest Films produces one or two.  Ten years ago, there were 14-16 black theatrical releases a year.  The reality is that it’s not looking good right now for black filmmakers.

Its even hard on the direct-to-video side because shelf life is being taken up by studio released videos and TV shows, making it hard for smaller urban films to find space.  Gone are the days when filmmakers could get $150k in a home video deal.  Margins are so low that many filmmakers have to turn down home video deals because the margins are so small, they won’t make their money back.  Black filmmakers today have much to deal with; they really have to be savvy businesspeople.  

The good news is that the Internet offers filmmakers a somewhat level playing field where they can find an audience and really make some noise about their film.  More and more its up to the filmmaker to make their own way and use multiple distribution outlets, to sell their movie.  That’s why film festivals are playing an even larger role for black filmmakers in terms of creating buzz, momentum and engaging  audiences.

Q.  Many of Hollywood's A-list black stars attend HBFF.  Who can we expect to attend this year?

I can tell you that there are a number of notables that have films in the festival.  Director Rob Hardy from Rainforest Films and photographer Derek Bailey produced an amazing documentary called “I Am A Dream Chaser” that’s getting a lot of buzz. “Phunny Business: A Black Comedy” documents the rise and fall of All Jokes Aside, the famous Chicago comedy club and  has appearance from every well-known black comedic past and present, including  Steve Harvey, Cedric The Entertainer, Bernie Mac, D.L. Hughley, Robin Harris, S’more. Blair Underwood hosts the documentary “They Are Not All Lost” which includes appearances by Nick Cannon, Malcolm Jamal Warner and Sinbad. “Grace in Sara” features Eva LaRue from “CSI: Miami”  and “Burned” has a special appearance by Eric Roberts (Julia Roberts brother)

Q. Patrons also get the opportunity to experience black indie films in a unique setting, what can audiences expect?

Audiences can expect films from not just the U.S., but from all across the African Diaspora.  This year we have some beautiful films from Africa including “Kenya Boys,” “Township to the Stage” and “Fish about Sea Level.”

The student film “Kenya Boys” is about five Kenyan high school boys living in the second largest slum in all of Kenya who band together as a hip hop dance crew to try and audition for Kenya's version of 'America's Best Dance Crew'.

Actor-comedian Anthony Anderson executive produced the documentary “Township To the Stage” about a multiracial comedian in South Africa who creates material from his experiences during apartheid as he prepares for the biggest show of his life.  

From Jordan, there’s the feature film, “Fish Above Sea Level,” a road film about an affluent young urban professional and a young village farmer, both share a history and roots. Both find themselves unwilling participants in another cycle of history that pits the prosperity of one against the survival of another

Featuring Bill Whitaker and other news correspondents from CBS News, the documentary “Reason to Hope” is very compelling.  It tells the story of CBS journalists, correspondent Bill Whitaker and producer Erin Lyall George who had the fortune to remain in Haiti for a month, witnessing more than any other American network journalists do. The film raises the important questions: What is the journalist's responsibility and relationship to their subjects during a crisis like the earthquake in Haiti? Is it possible to be objective when your sense of humanity is called upon during a tragedy of this magnitude? Bill and Erin give us REASON TO HOPE.

Q.  For filmmakers, HBFF is an important platform and venue, tell us more about the advantages for them?

For filmmakers, HBFF is a chance to network with like-minded industry professionals, foster new business relationships, learn from and mingle with high-level industry executives, develop a fan base, and create a level of hype and promotion that they probably wouldn’t be able to create on their own.  It puts the filmmaker’s film in the face of distributors, acquisition executives, agents and others that can take their film to the next level, possibly finding its way onto the big screen.  

Bottom line, HBFF is about 3 things:  ACCESS.  OPPORTUNITY.  DEALS. It's not about the party, it's about the business of indie filmmaking! That's the HBFF 2011 mantra!  We're getting down to BUSINESS.  Join us October 27-30.