Race Forward and Working Films are thrilled to announce the 2022 Race Flicks film track of Facing Race: A National Conference being held as a hybrid event, online and in-person in Phoenix, Arizona, from November 17-19, 2022. Race Flicks lifts up critical issues of racial justice through film. This year’s program maintains a focus on accountable filmmaking that truly respects and reflects the people and places featured, and holds great potential to build power among those represented in the stories at hand. The selected films were chosen in large part because of the way they can be used strategically by advocates, organizers, and nonprofits to advance their work for racial justice.Dozens of filmmakers applied for the opportunity to screen their film at this year’s Facing Race. Ten films were selected, including four by artists based in the US Southwest. This is especially significant given injustices in the region, including continued attacks against immigrants, the extraction of land, and harms against Indigenous communities.This year’s line up of films cover these themes and highlight community organizing in the face of climate disasters; equity within philanthropy; the importance of funding Black leaders, Black-owned businesses, and Black-led organizations; and Black Feminism as a path toward liberation for us all. The full Race Flicks line up will feature the following films as well as panel discussions on the issues covered. The full Race Flicks and conference schedules are coming soon. Register for the conference here!
Ale Libre
Directed by Maya Cueva; Produced by Mayra Amaya and Melissa Bueno-Woerner; Featuring Alejandra Pablos
Run time: 17 minutes
Alejandra is a criminalized organizer and unapologetic immigrant. While she prepares for one of the biggest moments of her life — her deportation case — Alejandra is forced to reckon with a past mistake and a system that could tear her apart from her family and the only home she has ever known.
Apache Leap
Directed by Christian Rozier; Executive Produced by Douglas Miles Jr. and Glen Lineberry; Produced by Selina Curley, Carrie Curley, and Douglas Miles Sr.
Run time: 84 minutes
Apache artist Keane is forced into a desperate mission to get a job before the deadline passes and his dreams evaporate, all while confronting family stresses, enemies from his past, and an unpredictable old car. Produced on location in the San Carlos Apache Reservation and the neighboring city of Globe, Arizona, this independent feature explores the extraordinary beauty and the unique challenges of these two communities, and the scorching ribbon of highway that connects them together.
Building the American Dream
Directed & Produced by Chelsea Hernandez; Executive Produced by Marcy Garriott; Produced by Marisol Medrano Montoya; Co-Produced by Mario Troncoso and Iliana Sosa
Run time: 56 minutes
Across Texas an unstoppable construction boom drives urban sprawl and luxury high-rises. Its dirty secret: abuse of immigrant labor. Building the American Dream captures a turning point as a movement forms to fight widespread construction industry injustices. Grieving their son, a Mexican family campaigns for a life-and-death safety ordinance. A Salvadorian electrician couple owed thousands in back pay fights for their children’s future. A bereaved son battles to protect others from his family’s preventable tragedy. A story of courage, resilience and community, the film reveals shocking truths about the hardworking immigrants who build the American Dream, of which they are excluded.
Call & Response
Directed by Princeton James; Assistant Directors: Sequoia Gray and Angel Clark; Produced by Princeton James and the Memphis Music Initiative; Screenplay Written by Amber Hamilton
Run time: 9 minutes
In this commentary on the nonprofit fundraising process, Memphis Music Initiative’s (MMI) Executive Director Amber Hamilton explains (with help from Harriet Tubman) why current philanthropic practices are inequitable, unhelpful, and nonsensical. But these practices can be changed. Through its Call & Response initiative, MMI is modeling a new way of thinking about grantmaking, funding, and equity in the arts. Black Pay Matters. Black Legacy Matters. Black Rest Matters.
In the Wake of Mourning
Directed by Adetoro Makinde; Featuring Tyrese Alleyne-Davis
Run time: 6 minutes
In the middle of the pandemic and protests for racial justice, Tyrese Allyene-Davis a disabled Black youth, celebrated his 21st birthday isolated in his NYU dorm room. Following a screening of I Am Not Your Negro, his introduction to James Baldwin pushes him into a visceral call for help in a Facebook post. Shot on Super 8mm film, this experimental documentary short expands on his audio to capture the mental exploration of his thoughts with hauntingly poetic moments of intimacy, pain and celebration.
Jubilee: A Black Feminist Homecoming
Directed by Paris Hatcher; Executive Produced by Black Feminist Future; Produced by Chisom Chieke; Co-Produced by Crystal Des-Ogugua
Run time: 95 minutes
Jubilee: A Black Feminist Homecoming celebrates the legacy, power, and possibilities of Black feminisms, following the August 28, 2021, event that uplifted a colorful and expansive production of performers, liberators, and guiding stars that told the story of Black feminist activism, unveiled the Black Feminist Platform, with concrete actions to take toward liberation.
Powerlands
Directed by Ivey Camille Manybeads Tso; Produced by Jordan Flaherty, Emily Faye Ratner, and Ewa JasiewiczRun time: 75 mins.
A young Navajo filmmaker, Ivey Camille Manybeads Tso, investigates displacement of Indigenous people and devastation of the environment around the globe caused by the same chemical companies that have exploited the land where she was born. On this personal and political journey she learns from Indigenous activists across three continents.
Unwavering: The Power of Black Innovation
Directed by Fearless Video; Produced by Echoing Green and Fearless Video with support from Comcast NBCUniversal
Run time: 25 minutes
Featuring interviews with Dr. Cory Greene (also featured in Ava DuVernay’s 13th), architect and activist Deanna Van Buren, gaming and tech educator Damon Packwood, and award-winning social entrepreneur and nonprofit leader Dr. Cheryl Dorsey, Unwavering explores chronic underfunding of Black-led organizations, all the while celebrating the optimism and perseverance of Black innovators from across the United States.
We Still Here
Directed and Produced by Eli Jacobs Fantauzzi; Produced by Kahlil Jacobs-Fantauzzi, Michael Shawn Cordero, Frances Medina, and Mensajeros De Palomas
Run time: 54 minutes
We Still Here introduces the incredible youth of Comerío, Puerto Rico navigating the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, a disaster that brought an unprecedented level of devastation to an island already in economic and political crisis. In the lush mountains in the center of Puerto Rico, 24-year-old Mariangelie Ortiz leads a group of young residents who never thought they would become the leaders of their community, nonetheless find themselves traveling to Washington D.C. to protest in the halls of Congress. Follow them in this coming of age story as they find their power and begin creating a sustainable future for themselves and their community.
You Racist, Sexist, Bigot
Directed and Produced by Pita Juarez and Matty SteinkampRun time: 60 minutes
Featuring first-voice stories of discrimination and hope, ‘You Racist, Sexist, Bigot’ was conceived and filmed in Arizona but tells truly – and sadly – American stories. From the story of a young black male raised in Ferguson, MO, to the account of an undocumented transgender woman living and working in a state where immigrant rights is more than just a headline, each writer shares an intimate, powerful message of their understanding of the bigotry they face daily. With an original soundtrack which speaks of love, justice, and the need for family and community, You Racist, Sexist, Bigot follows the struggles that occur every day not just in Arizona but in neighborhoods and cities all across the United States.
