BLACK FILM: AN INTRODUCTION
Ages 16-29
Summer 2020, Online
In this distance learning film studies workshop, student fellows will view and analyze a selection of Black-authored films ranging from work by the silent era’s Oscar Micheaux to work by today’s Ryan Coogler, Lena Waithe, and other Black independent and studio filmmakers. Along the way, they’ll discover lost films across genres and eras that generate discussion about what defines Black authorship of film. The workshop will address both history and aesthetics, and examine performance and portrayal. Fellows will explore all elements of cinematic form, learning the vocabulary to help them grasp and talk about the complexities of mise en scène and editing in visual storytelling. Close observation and critical thinking will be emphasized. Fellows will connect with the instructor and the group twice per week through a Zoom call for film screenings and discussion. They will keep journals of their reflections on screened films, and share them weekly through an online platform. Fellows should expect to spend at least four hours per week on this workshop. A great opportunity for filmmakers and film lovers both! Limited to 10 student fellows.
Black Film: An Introduction is a co-production of Baltimore Youth Film Arts and Morgan State University.
Keith Mehlinger is Director of the Digital Media Center and of the Screenwriting and Animation program (SWAN) at Morgan State University. A producer/writer/director, he produced episodes of the syndicated series, Story of a People. He is also a contributor to the upcoming volume on Charles Burnett's Killer of Sheep, Volume III of the Indiana University Press series Studies in the Cinema of the Black Diaspora, edited by David Wall and Michael Martin.
Michelle Mokaya is a Johns Hopkins University undergraduate in the School of Engineering. Although her concentration is still undecided, she is passionate about using her degree to work on sustainable projects that could help improve the lives of those in marginalized communities. She is a program assistant for Baltimore Youth Film Arts.