Boston University
09/18/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 09/19/2024 03:53
Black Student Film Festival Heads to the Big Screen
Black Student Film Festival Heads to the Big Screen
Organized by COM club, festival will be at the Coolidge Corner Theatre
The second BlackBox Film Festival, which recognizes Black student filmmakers from around New England, will be held at the Coolidge Corner Theatre September 23. Photo by Julian Massari
Arts & Culture
Black Student Film Festival Heads to the Big Screen
Organized by COM club, festival will be at the Coolidge Corner Theatre
When the lights dim at the Coolidge Corner Theatre at 7:30 pm on September 23, it will mark a signature achievement for two College of Communication seniors. Lynn Asare-Bediako and Lydia Evans founded BlackBox, a Black film society, to create a space for Black filmmakers to share ideas, develop their skills, and network. That night they will host the second BlackBox Film Festival, featuring short films from Black student filmmakers from across New England.
The event is the culmination of a journey that began more than a year and a half ago. Asare-Bediako (COM'25) and Evans (COM'25) were inspired to create BlackBox by their own experiences in a field that's predominantly white and male.
"I wanted to make a club where, at the forefront, there were Black voices and Black stories-both in front of and behind the camera," Asare-Bediako says.
"It was necessary," Evans says. "Most of the [projects] that I've been on, there weren't many Black people. It can feel a bit isolating."
Lynn Asare-Bediako (COM'25) (left) and Lydia Evans (COM'25) founded BlackBox, a Black film society, in 2023. Photo courtesy of EvansIn spring 2023, the two filmmakers found a faculty advisor, Tunji Akinsehinwa, a COM associate professor of the practice of production in film and TV and cinematography, recruited an executive board, and began planning events.
BlackBox has hosted film screenings, workshops for Black film and television students, and-for the broader community-master classes in lighting Black skin tones and a casting session with actors of color. The club also financed a student film that's now in postproduction. Asare-Bediako and Evans served as the film's executive producers and the cast and crew were predominantly Black.
The film festival, however, is the club's marquee event-and at the urging of Akinsehinwa, the organizers have gone bigger this year. The inaugural festival, in September 2023, was held in a screening room at COM, now it's in a movie theater. They also expanded their reach, accepting entries not just from Boston-area schools, but from schools across New England. Asare-Bediako says they received about 30 entries, a third of them from BU students,
To be eligible, films must be short (4 to 15 minutes), have a Black student in the role of producer, director, or cinematographer, or have a predominantly Black cast. The finalists, selected by a panel of judges, will be screened at the festival, with the top three films receiving awards of $600, $300, and $150.
A year and a half after launching BlackBox, Asare-Bediako cites the first festival as the highlight thus far. "I was really happy for all of the filmmakers to have a good audience," she says. "They talked about how great it was to hear people react to their films for the first time."
And what about the challenges of organizing a film festival while starting her senior year of college? "It hasn't been too stressful," she says. "It's actually a lot easier than producing a film."
Visit Eventbrite for information about BlackBox Film Festival tickets.
Learn more about BlackBox's upcoming events on Instagram.
Event Details
BlackBox Film Festival
A Black student film festival organized by BlackBox, COM's Black film society
September237:30 PMtoSeptember239:30 PM
Coolidge Corner Theatre, 290 Harvard St, Brookline
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Marc Chalufour
Editor, Senior Writer
Marc Chalufour is a senior editor/writer responsible for print and digital magazines for the College of Arts and Sciences and the College of Communication. Prior to joining BU in 2018, he spent a decade editing AMC Outdoors, the Appalachian Mountain Club's magazine, where his feature writing received multiple awards from Association Media & Publishing. Profile
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