It’s been an incredible week at #tiff23 . I’m so grateful to the @blackscreenoffice for the opportunity to be here and soak in all the inspiration and meet my fellow delegates 💜
Some films hit you so hard, all you can do is whisper: “That was one of the best films I’ve ever seen... I never want to watch it again.” 🎬
These films sit with you long after they're over, burrow into your bones, make you feel guilty for being 'dazzled' by them (for lack of a better term).
Y’know the ones: Schindler’s List (1993), The Pianist (2002), Amistad (1997), Life is Beautiful (1997), Glory(1989)...the list is long.
Well, mine is 🤷♀️
𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐞𝐞 (𝟏𝟗𝟖𝟓) is on my list.
Directed by Elem Klimov, this Soviet anti-war masterpiece doesn't just depict the horrors of World War II—it immerses you in them. A young boy joins the Soviet resistance in WWII & what unfolds is a descent into the most surreal, brutal corners of human history. It's about the slaughter of innocence brought on by war. An epic hero's journey but with no heroes. Roger Ebert described it as "one of the most devastating films ever about anything,". I mean, damn. But also: he was right 😭
This isn't a film for casual viewing. If you choose to watch it, do so with the understanding that it will leave an indelible mark 😢
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥 (𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟔)
Paramount Pictures was founded in 1914—and if you laid out a printed list of their films alone (in 12 pt font), it could probably stretch across a couple of football fields.
That’s the paradox of our endless appetite for stories and our equally relentless urge to make them: the deeper the archive grows, the more treasures get buried.
So many extraordinary films exist—brimming with artistry, emotion, invention—but there’s simply not enough time to watch them all.
A staggering abundance… and a quiet grief in knowing how much we’ll never see.
To me, films like 'The Fall 'should be canonized. To another (perhaps a jaded-no-taste-critic), it's a "style over story" wreckage. To me, most films are like people. Every last one, imperfect but still deserving to be loved in their own way. To this day, my #imagination wanders to the world that Tarsem Singh created with his film (I saw it the week it was released). If all I ever made was one film like The Fall, I’d consider my entire career a success. IDGAF what the critics say because the only requirement of a film is to exist.
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The Fall " .... tells a story about how no story is the product of just one teller. ....blood-red, sky-blue, saturated & full of butterflies & growling soldiers & places that seem solid enough in the real world until you line them up one after another, at which point they become a dream, a single land of everything #beautiful. Everything still hurts in that beautiful land; everyone is betrayed, left alone, haunted...."🥀
Beautiful and sad just like I like my Tinder matches…
𝐌𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐨 (𝟐𝟎𝟎𝟎)
Anyone remember this film? (see what I did there?😎)
Man, I miss the days when you’d head to the cinema & see a film so wildly original it made you abruptly change careers.
Just me? Oh, ok.
Would you believe I haven't seen one Christopher Nolan film since? Is that weird? #Memento forever🙏🏾🖤
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#chrisnolan #thriller #filmphotography #filmcamera #mystery #intheyear2000 #classic #euphoria #art #artoftheday
This talk is living rent free in my head. I don’t give a flying rat’s pyjamas that it’s not #tbt !
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Nothing has been more valuable to me & my growth as a creative professional than having other black professionals give their testimonies in public spaces (blogs, conferences, articles &op eds). The first time I learned that a microagression was a real thing and not ‘all in my head’, was from a candid blog post that shared the experiences of three black women.
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@kadonkadiekay of @bipoctvfilm is such a brilliant leader & speaker. Gracious and intelligent. And Andrew Burrows-Trotman’s affirmation that you don’t have to show up on a set knowing everything —was like being released from a full body vice. As a black creator I had fixated on the idea I HAD TO know everything or never show my face on a set. It’s a result of social expectations for black women, workplace trauma and the sometimes toxic perfectionism that I have to fight on every project. This was a brilliant panel and one of the best I’ve been to in years. So grateful to all the speakers 🤎 and the opportunity to soak up all this wisdom.
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#bipoc #film #television #blackartists #writer #blackwriters #black #content #canada #creative #inspiration #inspirational #truth #share
The best way to finish a script you’ve been working on for two years is having someone asking to see your first draft in 24 hours.
Work work work that’s all I do.
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#writer #bipoc #bipocmakers #livingontheedge #contentcanada #filmfestival #tiff #tiff2022 #adhdproblems #sleep #nosleep #drake #drakehotel #toronto
I didnt mean to make this list entirely spooky 👻 but in thinking of which shows to put on it, the theme turned out to be "Slow-Burning Spookfests". The list however, is perfect even for an audience that isn’t entirely keen on horror. Brilliantly crafted series you WILL #binge!!
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These 5 may not be ‘underrated’ to some of you but I refer to them as such because despite being some of the best TV/streaming series’ I have seen, these are still shows many havent watched or even heard of! 😱
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MIDNIGHT MASS
Mike Flannagan is a brilliant creator & also responsible for the house haunting horrors: Hill House + Bly Manor. Small, isolated island community? ✅ Creepy evangelical priest? ✅Miracles & mysterious cat caracasses? ✅ What more can a thriller ask for?! (I hazard to refer to this as a straight up horror). Hamish Linklater is honestly sooooooo brilliant (always). Like, give-him-every-acting-award, brilliant.
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THE THIRD DAY
This viewing experience was made better, not knowing anything about the plot. Be ready for the slow burning embers of this thriller/mystery to keep you going ‘wtf?’ until at least the third episode. Scratch that: you’ll also utter that after the finale. But in a good way. Unhinged Jude Law is quite riveting too.
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The OUTSIDER
To me, Stephen King stories read amazingly but never have I seen a film adapted from one of this novels–that I actually enjoyed (change my mind) also (excluding The Shining, duh). Ben Mendehlson is amazing & another familiar but not super popular actor who deserves so much more credit than he gets (literally and figuratively). Cynthia Erivo is brilliant and perfectly casted.
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ALL OF US ARE DEAD
Makes #WalkingDead look like #bigbangtheory. Do👏🏾not👏🏾skip👏🏾this recommendation. Thank Netflix for this recommendation. WATCH THIS RECOMMENDATION. YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT. YES I AM YELLING. 🧟♀️
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LES REVENANTS
French cinematic perfection. Eerie and romantic. Spooky and tragic. I still rewatch this one all these years later and can only hope to write something this incredible.
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#hbo #netflix #bbc #bingeworthy #recco #independentfilm #fun #creative #blacklivesmatter #film #entertainment #screenwriter #story #stories
That’s a wrap! 🎬 Finished up a 16 week accelerator with @storymoneyimpact & honed my #Impact production skills.
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For years I’d been doing this nature of work in a vacuum. Not sure if there were others like me in the digital industry who focused solely on issue based content, films and art. There is an entire #ecosystem of marketers & producers whose goal is to make measureable impact with every project they work on. And support makers of #art meant to change our world.
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SMI welcomed me with open arms into their world & I couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity to make life long friends; learn life changing skills & gain a new hope for the future of marginalized stories & voices 🤎
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I look forward to working on incredible projects & campaigns with SMI like the incredible & impactful #klabonakeepers—a doc that illustrates the unmatched resilience, courage & warrior spirit of #indigenous communities defending sacred lands & cultures.
