Saturday, June 15, 2024

Queer Black Currents (QWOCFF Centerpiece)

“Queer Black Currents” shorts program, QWOCFF 2024 Saturday Centerpiece
Saturday, June 15, 2024, 1:00 PM, Presidio, total run time 92 minutes
all films are fully open captioned in English with audio description available
⚠️Content Warning: several films have content warnings; see below
Emergency Contact by Yvonne Onakeme Etaghene, 2024 USA, 10 min., in Ijaw, Urhobo, Nigerian Pidgin English, English, and French ๐Ÿ’–

In the woods, a dark-skinned Ijaw and Urhobo Nigerian dyke kneels and gasps for breath, looking around fearfully.
Emergency Contact
Haunted by a devastating heartache, an Ijaw and Urhobo Nigerian dyke realizes that grief is an expression of love she can never outrun.

⚠️Content Warning: Grief, Emotional pain

Bio: Yvonne Onakeme Etaghene is an Ijaw Urhobo Nigerian dyke poet, performer, educator, fashion designer, playwright, and tattoo enthusiast.

In this entry in a genre the filmmaker calls “grief as horror,” the protagonist externalizes her grief over the loss of loved ones as a clone of herself, interfering in her life, arguing with her, and generally making a mess until she made space to express it. It’s a powerful image of heartfelt passion, MUST SEE.

• IMDb • Official website • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram: @MyLoveIsAVerb • Facebook • preview • guest on “Nigerian Dyke Realness” podcast •
Line of Reverence by Ashante J. Ford, 2024 USA, 5 min. ๐Ÿซค

Two ancestral spirits with veiled faces lay their heads on the shoulders of a young Ghanaian woman wearing a blue and orange headwrap.
Line of Reverence
A Ghanaian woman communes with her ancestors during her day of devotion ritual.

⚠️Content Warning: Grief, Emotional pain

Bio: Ashante J. Ford is a multimedia artist in the business of genre-bending and exploring creative ways to revere her ancestry.

I’ll be honest: this film really didn’t work for me. At the end of it, I didn’t know what happened, much less what to make of it. It’s beautifully filmed, and perhaps will make more sense to someone with more knowledge of Ghanaian culture. Recommended.

• IMDb • Official website • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram: @BlackFeministFilmSchool • Facebook • preview • other •
Two dark skinned Black nonbinary people connect their foreheads in an intimate embrace.
Omwan’ekhui:
Person of Dark Skin
Omwan’ekhui: Person of Dark Skin by Asari Aibangbee, 2022 USA, 13 min. ๐Ÿ‘

Multifaceted Black artists shape society, buoyed by their ancestors and the freedoms that come with being a culture shifter.

⚠️Content Warning: Colorism, Flashing images, Mentions of homophobia and transphobia

Bio: Asari Aibangbee is a queer Nigerian interdisciplinary artist with a focus on filmmaking and art curation from Los Angeles, California.

This film explores the intersection of Black and nonbinary in a culture that oppresses and marginalizes both identities. It’s a powerful statement, Highly recommended.

• IMDb [director] • Official website • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram: @IMetGodSheBlack @Colorism.Experimental • Facebook • preview • other •
You Don’t Have to Like Me by Safiyah Chiniere, 2023 USA, 10 min., in English and Jamaican ๐Ÿ’–

A group of masculine presenting Black women and nonbinary people stand together with crossed arms, united.
You Don’t Have to Like Me
A masculine-presenting African American woman carries the divine feminine within as she voyages for community through a world marred by hate.

⚠️Content Warning: Homophobia

Bio: Safiyah Chiniere is director, photographer, and editor who uses film to amplify stories and voices of people of color.

A gender-variant person argues with a mother who would rather face a crisis alone than have help from a child she does not understand. Powerful, well executed, MUST SEE.

• IMDb • Official website • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram • Facebook • preview • other •
Heavy is the Head by Juniper Johnson, 2023 USA, 6 min. ๐Ÿ’–

A Black woman kicks her feet up on a desk and looks straight at the camera, a coffee mug in her hand.
Heavy is the Head
Black people steer through plights and outlandish situations that stem from texturism.

⚠️Content Warning: Texturism

Bio: Juniper is an alchemist who weaves words of past and present to explore blackness.

Heavy is the Head is structured as a series of commercials or public service announcements for “Afro-mation,” “barbership,” and a “hairy godmother” who delivers Product, among others. “My hair has a mind of its own — and some things are better left to God.” They’re all fun and laugh-out-loud funny. Beautifully executed, definitely a MUST SEE.

• IMDb [director?] • Official website • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram • Facebook • preview • other •
A Poem Called Love Jones by Linda Denson & Diana Khong, 2023 USA, 6 min. ๐Ÿ’–

Two queer Black people share a passionate kiss in a twilit lit club.
A Poem Called Love Jones
Black lesbian love crests in a sweet spoken word performance about a couple's first meeting.

Bio: Linda Denson and Diana Khong are queer filmmakers creating and celebrating magic, romance, and laughter.

The spoken-word part is beautifully performed and filmed, looking to explore the world of “If Looks could Kiss.” It’s sexy, funny, and affirming; definitely a MUST SEE.

• IMDb • Official website • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram: @TheLindaDen @DianaXKhong • Facebook • preview • other •
Black Rainbow Love by Angela Harvey, 2022 USA, 42 min. ๐Ÿ’–
A Black person with grey locs cheerfully waves a rainbow fan, wearing bright red glasses that match their sweater.
Black Rainbow Love

On a quest for understanding and acceptance, queer Black people share the challenges and triumphs of love and faith.

⚠️Content Warning: Mentions of homophobia and transphobia

Bio: Angela Harvey is an award-winning filmmaker who crafts poignant narratives that capture diverse stories and foster empathy.

The Black Rainbow Love project project set out to explore, through in-depth interviews, personal narratives, and powerful testimonials, the intersection of race, gender, and sexuality within the Black LGBTQ+ community. It’s further proof that there is nothing more powerful than people telling their own stories. It’s a beautifully constructed film about an important subject, definitely a MUST SEE.

• IMDb • Official web site • Filmmaker • Twitter • Instagram • Facebook • preview • YouTube channel •
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