Newark Black Film Festival Is Turning 50: ‘Longest-Running In USA’

NEWARK, NJ — The following news release comes courtesy of the Newark Museum of Art/Newark Black Film Festival. Find out how to post announcements or events to your local Patch site.

The Newark Museum of Art (NMOA) is pleased to announce plans for the 50th anniversary of the Newark Black Film Festival (NBFF), the longest-running Black film festival in the United States and a pivotal platform for Black filmmakers, actors, and storytellers. Since its inception in 1974, the NBFF has been a beacon for over 850 films, drawing nearly 200,000 attendees to The Newark Museum of Art. This year’s festival will run from July 10-14, 2024, with special free screenings on June 19 and 26, and will feature new releases as well as encore screenings of popular classics. Highlights include the opening-night film Sing Sing, from A24 and starring Colman Domingo, a special presentation of Rob Peace, directed by Chiwetel Ejiofor, based on the real-life story of an intellectually brilliant young man's journey from Newark to the Ivy League, and back. Filmmaker Kasi Lemmons will also be honored during a throwback screening of her classic film Eve's Bayou. A full list of films and activity updates can be found at newarkblackfilmfestival.com.

Over the decades, the Newark Black Film Festival has showcased films that explore the intricacies of the Black experience, reflecting diverse narratives and fostering cultural enrichment. It has premiered works from young, independent filmmakers such as Spike Lee and Ava DuVernay, and featured influential figures like James Earl Jones and Danny Glover. Each screening, typically followed by a Q&A session with filmmakers and scholars, fosters a rich dialogue and deepens the audience’s connection to the films.

"We are thrilled to celebrate the 50th Newark Black Film Festival, a momentous milestone of a signature program at The Newark Museum of Art,” said Steven Hyland, Manager of Film & Public Programs at The Newark Museum of Art. “This year's festival will showcase an exceptional lineup of narrative features, documentaries, and short films, from both emerging and established talent. Join us in honoring the rich diversity of stories that reflect the breadth and depth of the Black experience, inspiring and captivating audiences from all walks of life.”

Richard Wesley, Chair of the Newark Black Film Festival committee added, "We are very proud of what we have accomplished but the task we have set ourselves to is maintaining our momentum across the next fifty years. A new generation of Black filmmakers from across the African Diaspora have emerged, with new ideas and new interpretations of the world in which we live. How do we prepare a place for them? How do we place ourselves in position to provide as much a boost for them as we did for the filmmakers who preceded them? These are the questions we must answer for ourselves and for the Community we serve. The times may have changed, but our central mission has not."

A calendar of events can be found below. Admission is free with registration, except where noted:

JUNE

Wednesday, June 19th, 7pm - Screening and discussion, Power of the Dream with short film, A Race in the Sun (Register here for free tickets)

Produced by Dawn Porter, Sue Bird, Nneka Ogwumike, and Tracee Ellis Ross, Power of the Dream is the empowering and unlikely true story of how a group of professional women’s basketball players took on a WNBA team owner and rallied behind now-Senator Raphael Warnock, forever changing the landscape of their sport and the course of U.S. politics.

Alongside Power of a Dream, delve into the cycling culture through the eyes of Ayesha McGowan, the world’s first African-American woman to become a professional cyclist with the short film A Race in the Sun by K. Nicole Mills.

Wednesday, June 26th, 7pm - Screening and discussion: Drip Like Coffee with short film, Unbraided (Register here for free tickets)

A free screening of Drip Like Coffee, directed by Anaiis Cisco, and the short film Unbraided by Caroline Renard. Discover the unexpected romance of two Brooklyn baristas and follow Frankie’s quest through Los Angeles. Stay for a post-screening Q&A with Director Anaiis Cisco.

JULY

Wednesday, July 10th

• 6pm - Opening Night Reception and Film: Sing Sing

Thursday, July 11th

• 1pm - Youth Cinema Throwback: The Wiz
• 7pm - Throwback: Eve’s Bayou (honoring Kasi Lemmons)

Friday, July 12th

• 1pm - Youth Cinema Throwback: Ruby Bridges
• 6pm - Songs from the Hole
• 9pm - Toll

Saturday, July 13th

• 11am - Where Creativity Meets Commerce: Small Businesses Working with Film & TV
• 1pm - Panel: 50 Years of Black Film ; Live Music in the Lounge
• 2pm - In the Order of Weapons: 50 Years of Community Film Across Black America
• 5pm - Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted
• 7pm - Listening is Fundamental: Black Film Edition, with Egypt
• 8pm - Rob Peace (tickets $12 – $15)

Sunday, July 14th

• 10am - Family Tree
• 1pm - Shorts Block
• 4pm - Seeking Mavis Beacon
• 6pm - Black & Gold Gala

For additional details of all festival screenings and events, visit newarkblackfilmfestival.com.

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