T'Ain't Nobody's Bizness: Queer Blues Divas of the 1920s

The 1920s saw a revolution in technology, the advent of the recording industry, that created the first class of African-American women to sing their way to fame and fortune. Blues divas such as Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, and Alberta Hunter created and promoted a working-class vision of blues life that provided an alternative to the Victorian gentility of middle-class manners. In their lives and music, blues women presented themselves as strong, independent women who lived hard lives and were unapologetic about their unconventional choices in clothes, recreational activities, and bed partners. Blues singers disseminated a Black feminism that celebrated emotional resilience and sexual pleasure, no matter the source.

For My Sisters

FOR MY SISTERS is a movie about black culture or rather: black women, specifially: a movie about black singers. Alberta Hunter, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Nina Simone. They are the four "Big Sisters", singer Carole Alston follows through to the age of jazz. Alston, "a voice as dark and sweet as molasses", as described by the Financial Times, was born in Washington, DC and has been living in Vienna for almost 30 years. She is sure: "Those four icons help you explain what jazz is and even the history of jazz right along."

The Rape of Recy Taylor

Recy Taylor, a 24-year-old black mother and sharecropper, was gang raped by six white boys in 1944 Alabama. Common in Jim Crow South, few women spoke up in fear for their lives. Not Recy Taylor, who bravely identified her rapists. The NAACP sent its chief rape investigator Rosa Parks, who rallied support and triggered an unprecedented outcry for justice. The film exposes a legacy of physical abuse of black women and reveals Rosa Parks’ intimate role in Recy Taylor’s story.

Ralph Ellison: Invisible Man, Celebrated Writer

Ralph Ellison was an African-American writer and essayist, who's only novel Invisible Man (1953) gained a wide critical success. Ellison's ambitious journey from a childhood of hardship and poverty to celebrated African American writer is chronicled in this inspiring program through exclusive interviews and personal recollection.

The Story of Doctor Carver

The story of Dr. George Washington Carver (1864-1943), black educator and horticulturist. He is perhaps most well known for developing over 140 products from all parts of the peanut plant, including the shells and husks. He also developed products based on sweet potatoes and soybeans, and developed a cotton hybrid that was named after him.

Black Ballerina

BLACK BALLERINA tells the story of several black women from different generations who fell in love with ballet. Six decades ago, while pursuing their dreams, Joan Myers Brown, Delores Browne and Raven Wilkinson confronted racism, exclusion and unequal opportunity. Today, young dancers of color continue to face formidable challenges breaking into the overwhelmingly white world of ballet. Moving back and forth in time, this lyrical, character driven film shows how far we still have to go and stimulates a fresh discussion about race, inclusion and opportunity across all sectors of American society.

What Happened, Miss Simone?

The film chronicles Nina Simone's journey from child piano prodigy to iconic musician and passionate activist, told in her own words.

Chisholm '72: Unbought & Unbossed

In 1968, Shirley Chisholm becomes the first black woman elected to Congress. In 1972, she becomes the first black woman to run for president. Shunned by the political establishment, she's supported by a motley crew of blacks, feminists, and young voters. Their campaign-trail adventures are frenzied, fierce and fundamentally right on!

Brittney Griner: Lifesize

From a celebrated hoops prodigy to a self-reliant professional basketball star, from Baylor to the WNBA and overseas, Brittney Griner had a wild ride last year. Her trip ended in China, where she drew oohs and aahs from fascinated crowds ... and learned a little something about herself along the way.

Tina Turner - My Songs. My Life

Ebony Goddess: Queen of Ilê Aiyê

Ebony Goddess: Queen of Ilê Aiyê follows three women competing to be the carnival queen of Ilê Aiyê, a prominent and controversial Afro-Brazilian group with an all-black membership. The selection is based on Afro-centric notions of beauty, in counterpoint to prevailing standards of beauty in Brazil, a country famous for slim supermodels and plastic surgery. Contestants for the title of Ebony Goddess dress in flowing African-style garments, gracefully performing traditional Afro-Brazilian dances to songs praising the beauty of black women.

Althea

Althea Gibson’s life and achievements transcend sports. A truant from the rough streets of Harlem, Althea emerged as a most unlikely queen of the highly segregated tennis world in the 1950s. Her roots as a sharecropper’s daughter, her family’s migration north to Harlem in the 1930s, mentoring from Sugar Ray Robinson, David Dinkins and others, and fame that thrust her unwillingly into the glare of the early Civil Rights movement, all bring her story into a much broader realm of the American story.

Babás

Nannies combines autobiographical elements with a reflection on the presence of nannies in Brazil. With a subjective narration, the film incorporates photographs, domestic footage and newspaper adds from the 20th century, as well as contemporary images of nannies and children, building a personal narrative about the presence of nannies in the daily lives of many Brazilian families. A situation where the affection is genuine, but does not dissolve violence and racism.

Nina Simone: La légende

The Legend, on Nina’s life and music, was made in France by Frank Lords and it is told in large part by Nina Simone herself. It is an honest portrayal based on her autobiography “I Put A Spell On You,” that shows Nina at her mightiest and at her most vulnerable.

The Black Album

The Black Album places scrutiny on the notion of "Black Excellence" in a revisionist take.

Chasing Waterfalls

David is transported to the cut-throat world of fashion. Olivia, an up-and-coming fashion designer who gets the opportunity of a lifetime to work for icon Salma Barrie. But things go out of control when Olivia must step up to save the company and fight against a former co-worker who has started a competing company.

What's Love Got to Do with It

Singer Tina Turner rises to stardom while mustering the courage to break free from her abusive husband Ike.

Greased Lightning

The true life story of Wendell Scott, the first black stock car racing driver to win an upper-tier NASCAR race.

Tears of Joy

"Tears of Joy" is a short film depicting one girl's battle with bullying. It was created to create awareness about an issue to which many of our children fall victim.

Bella

Bella strolls on the beach of her youth, reflecting on life.