The African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) Celebrates the Best in Television Hollywood

Sponsored by Morgan Stanley Global Sports and Entertainment

TV Honors 8.23.25

On Saturday, August 23, 2025, AAFCA hosted its 7th Annual TV Honors at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood, CA.

Nneka Onuorah, Horizon Award honoree, got her start in the entertainment business as a BET intern and later, producer for Beverly Bond’s Black Girl. She made her directorial debut film “The Same Difference” about homophobia in the Black community. the producer and director of Megan Thee Stallion: In  Her Own Words. Rocks. In 2022, came the successful Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Girls.

Michelle Bueteau, winner of the Trailblazer Award, is a multitalented actress, comedian, producer, and more. She is the first female to tape a comedy special at the legendary Radio City Music. Her hilarious debut special earned Michelle the Critics Choice Award for Best Comedy Special.

Mara Brock Akil,  Legacy Award honoree. Creator of classic tv, Girlfriend, The Game, Being Mary Jane, and more.

Ayo Davis Salute,  Salute to Excellence Award honoree. President of Disney Branded Television.

Tina Perry, Visionary Award honoree, President of OWN

Keith Le Goy, TV Vanguard Award, Chairman of Sony Pictures Television (SPT)

Denise Nicholas, TV Icon Award. Denise began her theater journey with the Free Southern Theater, which used the performances as a form of protest. She later became a member of the Negro Ensemble and star in groundbreaking tv show, Room 227. An author of ‘Freshwater Road’ and the latest literature ‘Finding Home’ is on sale November 4, 2025.

Sterling K. Brown, winner Best Actor Award Paradise and Best Drama, Disney.

Paradise, Best Drama, Disney.

Kathy Bates, winner Best Actress, Matlock

The Supremes at Earl’s All You Can Eat, winner Best TV Movie, Disney.

Forever, winner Best New Show. Best Directors Anthony Hemingway, Thembi Banks, Mara Brock Akil and Regina King. Netflix.

Harlem,’ winner Best Comedy and top ten television program. ‘Cross’ Top Ten Television Program. Amazon MGM Studios.

Harlem, Best Comedy and Top Ten Television Program. Bel-Air, Best Ensemble, NBC Universal.

Skye P. Marshall, winner Breakthrough Talent  Matlock, CBS Original.

The GenZone, Best Reality, BET+ Original Series

The Big Cigar, Best Limited Series, Apple+TV

Number One on the Call Sheet, winner Best Documentary, Apple+TV

Stay Tuned for AAFCA Goes to Broadway, October 13, 2025

Documentary “Pay Dirt: The Story of Supercross” on TVOD and Digital

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Director: Paul Taublieb
Narrator:  Josh Brolin
Appearances: Hall of Fame legends Jeremy McGrath, Bob Hannah, Ricky Johnson, and Ricky Carmichael
Run time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Genre: Documentary
Language: English
Country: United States

An intriguing documentary from Emmy winner Paul Taubliebhe,“Pay Dirt: The Story of Supercross," and narrated by Josh Brolin, shares the details of the tragic days of the sport, Supercross, in 1972. And how the man who created the dangerous sport, Michael Goodwin, is serving a double-life sentence without the possibility of parole for murdering his ex-business partner and his wife. Supercross includes the industry's legends and Icons, the biggest names that paved the way for today’s most talented motorsports players in the world.

 “Pay Dirt: The Story of Supercross” a Documentary Narrated by Josh  Brolin  Available July 18th, 2025, on TVOD/Digital Globally

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Director: Paul Taublieb
Narrator:  Josh Brolin
Appearances: Hall of Fame legends Jeremy McGrath, Bob Hannah, Ricky Johnson, and Ricky Carmichael
Run time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Genre: Documentary
Language: English
Country: United States

Paul Taubliebhe ‘s documentary “Pay Dirt: The Story of Supercross" tells the compelling story  days of the sport of Supercross in 1972. And Michael Goodwin, a man who created the sport and now serving a double-life sentence without the possibility of parole for murdering his ex-business partner, featuring the biggest names, past and present of the most underappreciated, demanding, dramatic motorsports across the planet.

FYSEE LA ‘SIMONE BILES RISING’

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On Monday, June 2, Netflix hosted a special event for the PGA and Critics Choice Award-winning docu-series SIMONE BILES RISING at the Hollywood Athletic Club in Los Angeles. The closing night of FYSEE LA started with a special performance by the young gymnasts from the Wendy Hilliard Gymnastics Foundation followed by an exclusive conversation with Simone Biles and award-winning director Katie Walsh. The evening concluded with a reception where Simone took photos with guests. Please see below for photos from the event!

Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius) Review: When you carry your people on your shoulders

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Release dates: January 23, 2025 Sundance
February 13, 2025 Hulu and Disney+

Director: Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson
Appearances: Andre 3000, D'Angelo, Chaka Khan, Q-Tip, Nile Rodgers, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, George Clinton, Ruth Copeland, Clive Davis
Genre: Documentary
Run time: 1 hour 52 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English

An extraordinary film from director Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson ‘Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)’ gives an inside look at a man who revolutionized music with his unique style.

We have heard his great music for decades and now have the opportunity to learn about behind the music.

The film will certainly have you wanting to laugh and cry as Sly’s life unfolds.

We have heard his great music for decades and now have the opportunity to learn about behind the music.

The film will make you want to laugh and cry as Sly’s life unfolds.

Questlove does a wonderful job directing the film. It's not a story of sensationalism or exploitation of a man, but an honest look at who he was and how he came to be in the music business.

One cannot help but see the weight of the burden he is carrying.  All the while, dealing with what appears to be mental health issues. It makes you wonder, was his drug use a means of self-medicating?

For a revolutionary musician and songwriter who had a huge impact on music, Sly and the Family Stone's story was long overdue.

Questlove has directed another great film. Stream it, you will not be disappointed.

Interviews from Greg Zola's Small Talk About Sly and Michael Rubinstone's On the Sly: In Search of the Family Stone are included in  the film.

Distributor: Hulu
Producers: Amit Dey, Joseph Patel, Derik Murray
Editor: Josh Pearson
Production companies: Onyx Collective, RadicalMedia, MRC, Two One Five Entertainment, StarDust Films, Network Entertainment, ID8 Multimedia, Sony Music Entertainment

‘Who in the Hell is Regina Jones?’ Review: Bold, fearless, strong, unapologetic, that is who she is, and more

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Directors: Billy Miossi, Soraya Sélène
Writer: From the writings of Regina Jones
Cast: Regina Jones
Executive producer: Sam Pollard
Producer: Alissa Shapiro
Composer: Gil Talmi
Editor: Nancy Novack
Co-editor: Alisa Selman

Regina said, I don’t understand people liking me or being interested in me. Who in the hell in Regina Jones?

Directors Billy Miossi and Soraya  Sélènetr’s film brings Regina Jones’ words to life on the screen in Who in the hell in Regina Jones?’ A remarkable story of an truly extraordinary woman from the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. A woman, along with her husband Ken Jones, in the 1980, founded ‘SOUL.’ The first publication devoted exclusively to African American music. It was the first time  that what African American musicians where doing was presented as news.

Listening to her speak of getting pregnant and married at 15 years old and Ken 19 years old and having 5 kids by the age of 22 years old, and the trauma and grief that she had to manage while raising herself, her family and building ‘SOUL’ into a major publication in the United States.

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It is said that behind every great man, is a great woman. And Regina was that. Hearing her talk about how Ken wanted to be a reporter and when the Watts and Rodney King riots took place, she told Ken to get out there and start reporting. And as they say, the rest is history. He had an outstanding career as the first African American on-air news reporter.

When speaking about moving away from Watts, Regina, “I have not forgotten where I come from, I just know that is not where I want to be.”

What best explains to me who Regina are these words and jester from her, “matter how many times you slip and fall, don’t ever give up on yourself. And if other people give up on you, she gives the middle finger.”

Regina Jones is truly an exceptional woman, with an amazing story that is long overdue.

An excellent must-see film

Tribeca 2025 -These Films ❤️ NY!

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Whether you’re joining us from out of town or you’re a native New Yorker looking to fall in love with the city all over again, these select features, docs, and shorts will put you in an Empire State of mind.

On a String

Thursday, June 5 @ 5:00 PM, The Indeed Theater at Spring Studios

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Living at home with mom and dad is a drag…even when that home is in the heart of New York City. In this narrative feature, a Juilliard-trained violinist is struggling to make a living when her toxic ex reappears with the chance to play viola in a prestigious orchestra. From writer, director, and star Isabel Hagen (who also happens to be a Juilliard-trained violinist), this laugh-out-loud comedy is also her directorial debut.

 

Shorts: NY Off Peak

Friday, June 6 @ 5:00 PM, The Indeed Theater at Spring Studios

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Only have a New York minute? These shorts were curated specifically for the city that never sleeps. Check out these pint-sized picks from our shorts program, highlighting all the wacky, wonderful, heartwarming realities of life in NYC.

Relay

Saturday, June 07 @ 4:00 PM, SVA Theater

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Glide through the streets of Manhattan like a ghost with reclusive fixer Ash, played by Riz Ahmed. This New York-centric action thriller for director David Mackenzie also stars Lily JamesSam Worthington, and Willa Fitzgerald in a simmering story of connection that ends with a riveting, pulse-pounding pursuit across the city.

Raoul’s, A New York Story

Wednesday, June 11 @ 5:45 PM, AMC 19th St. East 6

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The heart of New York’s food and art scenes of the ‘70s and ‘80s come to life in this documentary from Tribeca Studios following French bistro mainstay Raoul’s Restaurant. Founded in 1975 by two French brothers seeking to bring affordable French cooking to New York, this unassuming spot became the beloved hangout of the Soho art crowd that’s stuck around for fifty years.

The Sixth Borough

Wednesday, June 11 @ 8:30 PM, The Indeed Theater at Spring Studios

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Head just outside the city in The Sixth Borough, exploring the indelible yet often overlooked impact of Long Island’s suburbs on hip-hop. Through rich archival performance footage, new clips, and compelling interviews with scene OGs, this film balances a celebration of Long Island’s musical contributions and an unflinching look at the false promises of suburban life for Black families.

The premiere screening will be followed by a special performance from De La Soul and Rakim.

Empire Skate

Friday, June 13 @ 9:00 PM, Village East by Angelika

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Watch the colorful rise of New York skateboard culture in the 1990s, and the enduring influence of the brand SUPREME, as well as skaters like the legendary Tony Hawk, who breathed life into this vibrant world. From Tribeca alum Josh Swade, this exhilarating documentary looks at what happens when multiple cultural trends – skating, graffiti, hip-hop, and fashion – converge to make something timeless.

Meet the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival Jurors

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See all the jurors

The Jury is In!

You’ve seen the Festival line-up; now it’s time to reveal the jury. These industry leaders and creative visionaries will be deliberating on and presenting laurels to the top projects across 17 competition categories from film to games, audio storytelling to TV, and more.

Judging films in competition will be visionaries ranging from Colson Whitehead to Mira Sorvino to Matthew Broderick and Art Linson to Ilana Glazer — and those are just a few names on the list. The likes of Annie Murphy, Jennifer Beals, Brian Jordan Alvarez, Gina Rodriguez, Stephanie Hsu, and more will deliberate on the Nora Ephron Award, the 2025 Viewpoints Competition, and the AT&T Untold Stories Greenlight Committee.

Winners will be announced at the Tribeca Festival Awards Ceremony on June 12th.

But don’t just celebrate the winning programs — see them for yourself.

Our Festival Favorites Pass provides ticketless access to all Award Winner and Back By Popular Demand screenings on Sunday, June 15 as we bring back the most popular programs of the Fest, along with the award winners. For just $60, you can watch as many movies as you can schedule into one day.

Martha Stewart and R.J. Cutler at the Los Angeles Emmy event For “MARTHA”

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Photos Courtesy of Gonzalo Marroquin / Getty for Netflix
Photos Courtesy of Gonzalo Marroquin / Getty for Netflix

On Monday, May 12th, Netflix hosted a special event for MARTHA, a documentary celebrating America's first self-made female billionaire, Martha Stewart. The event featured a conversation with Martha Stewart and Director, Producer, and Writer R.J. Cutler as well as a gorgeous reception on the terrace of The Maybourne Beverly Hills. Please see below for photos from the event!

Martha Stewart / Film Participant
R.J. Cutler / Director, Producer, Writer
Moderated by Dave Karger/ TCM

ABOUT MARTHA

Through intimate and revealing interviews with the icon herself and those from her inner circle, R.J. Cutler's definitive documentary on Martha Stewart traces her rise from teenage model to her reign as the original influencer and America’s first self-made female billionaire.