37 Years of defining the independent film experience
Made possible by a grant from
Since its inception in 1974, the Newark Black Film Festival (NBFF) has become known among its peers as the longest running black film festival in the United States. Throughout the years, it has continued to provide a progressive public forum for hundreds of emerging writers, directors, producers, performers and film buffs who enjoy African American and African Diaspora cinema. Screening in the summer months, the films that are shown reflect the full diversity of the black experience in America, both past and present. Each film selection encompasses a wide range of cinematic forms and formulas, from documentary to the avant-garde, for youth and adults.
The festival also features the Paul Robeson awards, a biennial competition which will be held in 2012.
The Festival is free of charge to the public and receives funding in the form of special grants from foundations and corporations. The 2011 Festival season is made possible by a grant from Bank of America. It is administered by the Newark Museum and planned by the NBFF Selection Committee, which includes such notables as screenwriter and playwright Richard Wesley, who wrote the screenplays for "Let's Do It Again", "Uptown Saturday Night","Native Son","Deacons for Defense" and "Mandela & DeKlerk". Other Committee members, to name of few, include Jeff Friday, CEO and Co-founder of Film Life's American Black Film Festival, and Dr. Clement A. Price, noted historian, author and educator.
Festival Participants 1974-2011
| Anthony Abulu |
Al Freeman, Jr. |
Darnell Moore
|
| John Amos |
Marcus Garvey, Jr. |
Luis Moro
|
| Damani Baker |
Bill Gaskins |
Joe Morton
|
| Amiri Baraka |
Danny Glover |
Jess Mowry
|
| Ras Baraka |
Dr. Gwendolyn Goldsby-Grant |
James Mtume
|
| Keith Beauchamp |
William Greaves |
Dr. James Mutambirwa
|
| Camille Billops |
Sam Greenlee |
Mweze Ngangura
|
| Donald Bogle |
Pam Grier |
Gil Noble
|
| Coach Herman Boone |
Lisa Gay Hamilton |
Dr. Velile Notshulwana-Mqota
|
Pearl Bowser
|
Thomas Hart |
Euzhan Palcy
|
| Charles B. Brack |
Isaac Hayes |
Mayor Douglas H. Palmer, Trenton
|
Cesar Braga-Pinto
|
Chester Higgins, Jr. |
Gordon Parks
|
| Carl Brashear |
Tracey Higgins |
Kae Thompson Payne
|
Jim Brown
|
Rainette Holomon |
William Payne
|
Prof. Marcia Wilson Brown
|
Reggie Hudlin |
Brock Peters
|
N.L. Akili Buchanan
|
Warrington Hudlin |
Miriam Petty, Ph.D.
|
Charles Burnet
|
Byron Hurt |
The Honorable Bob Pickett
|
| Rev. Gilbert Caldwell |
Deborah Jacobs |
Clement Alexander Price, Ph.D.
|
| Richard Cammarieri |
Mayor Sharpe James, Newark |
Sheryl Lee Ralph
|
Roy Capanella, Jr.
|
Barry Jenkins |
Jules Ramsey
|
Sonny Carson
|
James Earl Jones |
Paul Robeson, Jr.
|
| Pete Chatmon |
Regina kelly |
Jeppe Ronde
|
| Benjamin Chavis |
Skip Kelly |
Noliwe Rooks
|
| Ayoka Chenzira |
Dr. Akil Kokayi Khalfani |
Zina Saro-Wiwa
|
| Kathleen Collins |
Jerry LaMothe |
John Sayles
|
| Fatoumata Coulibaly |
Eriq LaSalle |
Sham |
| Julie Dash |
Malcolm D. Lee |
Darien Sills-Evans |
| David Davidson |
Robinne Lee |
Aishah Shahidah Simmons |
| Bridget Davis |
Spike Lee |
Bob Slade |
| Roy Decarava |
Abbey Lincoln |
Percy Sutton |
| Ira Deutchman |
Laura Lomas
|
Tobias Truvillion |
| Ernest R. Dickerson |
Shola Lynch
|
Dr. Yvonne Thornton |
| Jane Dowell-Barton |
Paula J. Massood
|
James Van Der Zee |
| Amber Edwards |
Matthew Miele
|
Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker |
| Hafiz Farid |
Caroline Memnon, Esq. |
Richard Wesley |
| Chris Fetchko |
Winthrop McGriff
|
Junius Williams |
| Kim Fields |
Tynesha McHarris |
Giles R. Wright |
| Lisa France |
|
|
Newark Black Film Festival Selection Committee
Gloria Hopkins Buck, LCSW
Public Relations Consultant/
NBFF Chairperson
Patricia Faison
Marketing Associate and
NBFF Coordinator
Newark Museum
Jeff Friday
President
The Film Life, Inc.
Wilma J. Grey
Director
Newark Public Library
LeRoy Henderson
Visual Artist/Photographer/Arts Educator
Theodore T. Johnson, Ph.D.
Vice President, Human Resources
New Jersey Institute of Technology
Tynesha McHarris
Project Director
Sadie Nash Leadership Project
(SNLP)
Lisa Payne
Filmmaker
|
Miriam J. Petty, Ph.D.
Asst. Prof., Dept. of Arts, Culture and Media
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey/Newark
Clement Alexander Price, Ph.D.
Professor of History and Director
of the Rutgers Institute on Ethnicity,
Culture, and the Modern Experience
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey/Newark
Mary Sue Sweeney Price
Director & CEO
Newark Museum
Jane Rappaport
Former NBFF Festival Coordinator
Ralph R. Waller
Manager of Housing Production
Newark Housing Authority
Richard Wesley
Screenwriter/Playwright
|
Majahid C. Ali
Flora B. Baldwin
James Brown*
John Gregory Clemons
Oliver Franklin
Thomas C. Guy Jr.*
Gustav Henningburg
*Deceased
|
