Category: Feature

THE AFRICAN AMERICAN FILM CRITICS ASSOCIATION (AAFCA) SETS DECEMBER 3RD FOR  THE 5TH ANNUAL AAFCA TV HONORS

RECOGNIZING OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENTS IN TELEVISION AND STREAMING 

AAFCA WILL CELEBRATE ITS PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED WINNERS AT A PRIVATE LUNCHEON AT THE HOTEL CASA DEL MAR IN SANTA MONICA QUINTA BRUNSON, NIECY NASH-BETTS, “P-VALLEY,” JESSICA WILLIAMS, “TED LASSO,” JENNIFER HUDSON,  MARLA GIBBS AND DEBBIE ALLEN AMONG THOSE TO BE CELEBRATED

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LOS ANGELES, Nov. 10, 2023 – The African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) today announced a new date to celebrate its previously announced AAFCA TV Honors winners. The private, invitation-only event was previously scheduled for August 27th but was postponed due to the strike and will now be held on December 3rd at the Hotel Casa del Mar in Santa Monica, California.​

Presented by the African American Film Critics Association the AAFCA TV Honors recognize outstanding achievements in Broadcast Television and Streaming with a special emphasis on entertainment representing the Black diaspora.  Previously announced winners include Quinta Brunson, the cast of “P-Valley,” Jessica Williams, Debbie Allen, Niecy Nash-Betts, “The 1619 Project” and many more. Special honorees include Jennifer Hudson, who will receive the We See You Award, Delroy Lindo, who will receive the Legacy Award, and five-time Emmy® nominee Marla Gibbs who will receive the Legend Award.  The Apple TV+ show “Ted Lasso'' will receive the Inclusion Award, and CBS’ “S.W.A.T.,'' produced by Sony Pictures Television in association with CBS Studios, will receive the Impact Award.

"We are happy that our industry can take a collective sigh of relief and get back to work, " stated AAFCA co-founder and president Gil Robertson. “We love a good party here at AAFCA and we’re going to pull out all the stops to celebrate our winners and honorees.  With the industry in flux for so many months, we’re really looking forward to finally getting to recognize and celebrate these incredible talents.”

A full list of previously announced  winners follows:

2023 AAFCA TV HONORS AWARD RECIPIENTS:

  • BEST TV COMEDY - "Abbott Elementary" (ABC)

  • BEST TV DRAMA - "P-Valley" (Starz)

  • BEST NEW SHOW - "Mo" (Netflix) 

  • BEST DOCUMENTARY - "The 1619 Project" (Onyx Collective/Hulu) 

  • BEST LIMITED SERIES - "The Best Man: The Final Chapters" (Peacock)

  • BEST TV MOVIE - “Shooting Stars” (Peacock)  

  • BREAKOUT STAR - Jessica Williams - “Shrinking” (Apple TV+)

  • BEST ENSEMBLE - "P-Valley" (Starz) 

  • BEST TV WRITING - Quinta Brunson - “Abbott Elementary” (ABC) 

  • BEST TV DIRECTING - Mary Lou Belli, Debbie Allen, Tasha Smith, Henry Chan, Jordan E. Cooper - "The Ms. Pat Show" (BET+) 

  • BEST TV ACTING (Female) - Niecy Nash-Betts - “Dahmer - Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story” (Netflix)  

  • BEST TV ACTING (Male) - J. Alphonse Nicholson and Nicco Annan - "P-Valley" (Starz) 

ABOUT AAFCA
Established in 2003, AAFCA is the premier body of Black film critics in the world, actively reviewing film and television, with a particular emphasis on entertainment highlighting the Black experience in the US and throughout the rest of the African Diaspora. For more information on AAFCA and its programs visit http://AAFCA.com.

Watch New Clip: KING OF KILLERS (Lionsgate)  on Blu-ray™ and DVD October 31st

KING OF KILLERS-US POSTER (Lionsgate)

Release Date: Available on Blu-ray™ and DVD on October 31st
Director and Writer: Kevin Grevioux
Genre:  Action
Rating: R 
Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes 
Cast: Alain Moussi (Nobody), Marie Avgeropoulos (“The 100,” 50/50), Georges St-Pierre ( Captain America: The Winter Soldier),  Stephen Dorff (Blade, Old Henry), Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Kevin Grevioux (Underworld)             

Based on a graphic novel by writer-director Kevin Grevioux, King of Killers follows former Agency hit man Marcus Garan (Alain Moussi) as he attempts to unravel the mystery behind a tragic incident. When offered a $10 million contract to eliminate the world’s greatest assassin, Marcus travels to Tokyo to meet the client (Frank Grillo), but discovers other professional killers have been invited as well. Now Marcus and the others must confront this deadly, mythical assassin…or die trying. 

American Fiction: Review 

No Matter What Challenges and Stereotypes You Face in Life, You Are Not Immune from the Challenges Within Your Own Family 

Release dates: December 15, 2023 (United States)
Director:  Cord Jefferson
Screenplay:Cord Jefferson
Based on Erasure by Percival Everett
Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams,  Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown
Genre: Comedy, drama
Run time: 1 hour 57 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English 

Director and writer Cord Jefferson theatrical directorial debut ‘American Fiction’, based on the 2001 novel Erasure by Percival Everett, tells the challenges of writer and academic Thelonious "Monk" Ellison   Jeffrey Wright) as he tries to comes to terms with the success and fame of writers/authors, especially  Sinatra Golden (Issa Rae) whose books are full of all the stereotypes about African American while at the same time trying to cope with family dynamic with his sister  Lisa Ellison (Tracee Ellis Ross), brother Clifford "Cliff" Ellison (Sterling K. Brown), his mother Agnes Ellison Leslie Uggams and affairs of the heart with Coraline (Erika Alexander). 

American Fiction takes you through the up and downs of family life. You can share in the tough times of loss and the good times of celebration. It shows that being educated with financial means does not shield you from life’s trials and tribulations. 

We are reminded of the importance of being seen and having our humanity acknowledged during a conversation between Monk and Cliff. 

Monk said, “what if he rejected you? Referring to their father. Cliff, “at least he would have rejected the real me.” 

Cord’s script finds a visually interesting way of bringing Monk’s characters Willey the Wonker (Keith David) along with his son, to life as he drafts his book full of African American stereotypes. It is like a live play within the film. This style used through-out brought added dimension to the film 

The beautiful setting of his home state of Massachusetts, his family home and beach house shows without words  the upper middle-class lifestyle that Monk and his family enjoyed. 

As Monk struggles to understand the value in Sinatra Golden’s successful book He has a conversation with Sinatra and refers to the potential of a writer when Sinatra said, “potential is what they see when they think a person is not good enough.”  

There is so much truth in her statement. It makes you think about the stereotype people hold that lets you know they do not think highly of the people they demean. how non-minorities think of people of color 

 About Jefferey Cord

Jefferey Cord’s T.V. credits include Succession, The Good Place, Master of None, and his 2020 Emmy winning episode This Extraordinary Being. He began his writing career with publications The Ringer, GQ, the New Yorker, and later serving as the editor of Gawker .

Production companies: Orion Pictures, MRC Film, T-Street Productions, 3 Arts Entertainment
Distributors: Amazon MGM Studios
Release dates: December 15, 2023 (United States)
Run time: 1 hour 57 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English
Director:  Cord Jefferson
Screenplay:Cord Jefferson
Based on Erasure by Percival Everett
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams,  Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown
Cinematographer: Cristina Dunlap
Editor: Hilda Rasula
Music: Laura Karpman 

Watch the First Official trailer from writer and director Cord Jefferson’s Theatrical Directorial Debut American Fiction Premiering in the United States December 15th 

Release dates: December 15, 2023 United States
Director:  Cord Jefferson
Screenplay:Cord Jefferson
Based on Erasure by Percival Everett
Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams,  Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown
Genre: Comedy, drama
Run time: 1 hour 57 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English 

Writer and director Cord Jefferson's theatrical directorial debut American Fiction debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on September 8th and makes its limited theatrical release in the United States on December 15, 2023.

Cord Jefferson's romantic comedy film American Fiction shares the story of Monk, a writer , who becomes fed up with Black Americans being stereotyped in entertainment,as he goes on a quest to prove his point and writes a book full of all those kinds of  exploitation and the results it has on his life.Starring  in American Fiction is Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams,  Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, and Sterling K. Brown.

About Cord Jefferson

Cord’s T.V. credits include Succession, The Good Place, Master of None, and his 2020  Emmy winning episode This Extraordinary Being. He began his writing career with publications The Ringer, GQ, the New Yorker, and later serving as the editor of Gawker 

Release dates: December 15, 2023 (United States)
Production companies: Orion Pictures, MRC Film, T-Street Productions, 3 Arts Entertainment
Distributors: Amazon MGM Studios
Run time: 1 hour 57 minutes
Country: United States
Language: English 
Director:  Cord Jefferson
Screenplay:Cord Jefferson
Based on Erasure by Percival Everett
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams,  Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown
Cinematographer: Cristina Dunlap
Editor: Hilda Rasula
Music: Laura Karpman
Production companies: Orion Pictures, MRC Film, T-Street Productions, 3 Arts Entertainment
Distributors: Amazon MGM Studios
Release dates: December 15, 2023 United States
Run time: 1 hour 57 minutes
Director:  Cord Jefferson
Screenplay:Cord Jefferson
Based on Erasure by Percival Everett
Producers: Cord Jefferson, Jermaine Johnson, Nikos Karamigios, Ben LeClair
Starring: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams,  Adam Brody, Keith David, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown
Cinematographer: Cristina Dunlap
Editor: Hilda Rasula
Music: Laura Karpman  

KING OF KILLERS- Available on Blu-ray™ and DVD on October 31st Lionsgate

KING OF KILLERS-US POSTER (Lionsgate)

Release Date:Available on Blu-ray™ and DVD on October 31
Genre: Action
Rating: R 
Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes
Written & Directed by: Kevin Grevioux         
Cast: Alain Moussi (Nobody), Marie Avgeropoulos (“The 100,” 50/50), Georges St-Pierre ( Captain America: The Winter Soldier),  Stephen Dorff (Blade, Old Henry), Frank Grillo (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Kevin Grevioux (Underworld)          

Based on a graphic novel by writer-director Kevin Grevioux, King of Killers follows former Agency hit man Marcus Garan (Alain Moussi) as he attempts to unravel the mystery behind a tragic incident. When offered a $10 million contract to eliminate the world’s greatest assassin, Marcus travels to Tokyo to meet the client (Frank Grillo), but discovers other professional killers have been invited as well. Now Marcus and the others must confront this deadly, mythical assassin…or die trying. 

Finding Her Beat released theatrically September 26th in Vancouver, Canada, before launching its USA theatrical release through Sonder Entertainment  in October 2023

Finding Her Beat posterR15

Cinema Verite style documentary “Finding Her Beat”  is a moving and immersive cinematic experience from LGBTQ filmmakers and co-directors Dawn Mikkelson (“Minnesota Mean,” “Risking Light,” “The Red Tail”) and Keri Pickett (“Ribbon Skirt Warriors,” “First Daughter and the Black Snake,” “The Fabulous Ice Age”) who is also the director of photography.  “Finding Her Beat” made by a predominantly female/non-binary, largely Asian-American and LGBTQ+ filmmaking team and cast is a feel good music documentary. 

“Finding Her Beat” is directed by Dawn Mikkelson (“Minnesota Mean,” “Risking Light,” “The Red Tail”) and Keri Pickett (“Ribbon Skirt Warriors,” “First Daughter and the Black Snake,” “The Fabulous Ice Age”)who  is also the director of photography; produced by Jennifer Weir (Executive Director of TaikoArts Midwest, Artistic Director of Enso Daiko) and  Dawn Mikkelson; additional cinematography by Shiho Fukada  (“Mosaic Street”), Caroline Mariko Stucky (“Caissa”),  and Dawn Mikkelson; with original music by Me-Lee Hay  (“Better Watch Out,” “Last Tree Standing”) and edited by  Dawn Mikkelson, Sam Kaiser (“Road to Damascus,” “Inside”), Keri Pickett , and Carrie Shanahan (“Irv de Toilette,” Goodbye Hello”). 
 

To learn more please visit www.herbeatfilm.com  or to book the film in your market please contact Henry Lystad of Sonder Entertainment at: henrysonder8@gmail.com 

See New Clip – Lionsgate’s The Re-Education of Molly Singer”- Opens in Theaters and Digital/On Demand on September 29th, 2023 

TheReEducationofMollySinger_2000x3000

Director: Andy Palmer
Writer: Todd Friedman, Kevin Haskins
Cast: Britt Robertson, Ty Simpkins. Nico Santos, Cierra Ramirez, Holland Roden, Wendie Malick, Jaime Pressly
Rating: R for sexual content, pervasive language and some drug use.
Genre: Comedy

In college, attorney Molly Singer (Britt Robertson) was the life of every party. Now, she’s about to be fired because she can’t leave her partying ways behind. Molly’s boss, Brenda (Jaime Pressly), tells Molly there’s one way to save her job: re-enroll at her old alma mater, befriend Brenda’s socially awkward son, Elliot (Ty Simpkins), and take him from zero to campus hero. Aided by her best friend (Nico Santos), Molly goes to battle with stuck-up hall monitors, boozed-up frat brothers, and her old archenemy in a hilarious quest through the past to save her future. Run Time: 120 minutes
Distributor: Lionsgate

 

Documentary Feature Film “Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat” TVOD/Digital Release on July 27th

Photo odd hours

Sub-Genre Media engaging documentary “Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat, ” a Vignette Production and Hold Fast Features Project from filmmaking co-directing team Gary Matoso & Cameron Zohoori will be released in North American on TVOD/Digital platforms July 27th, 2023.

“Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat” is inspired by an original story by Peter Yoakum and takes audiences behind the lines of America’s volunteer fire service community. The film is truly a tribute to the nearly 700,000 volunteer firefighters around the country – highlighting their selfless bravery, compassion, motivation, and unfaltering sense of community. The film is presented by John Deere in association with the National Volunteer Fire Council, Hold Fast Features,  and Vignette. “Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat” is both a non AMPTP project and distributor, the film is a complete independent.

 

The 90-minute film grants audience’s exclusive access to follow the inspiring journey of the most remarkable neighbors whose help you hope you never need - volunteer firefighters - as they encounter heart-breaking challenges and exhilarating triumphs to fulfill a single mission: serving their community. Heart-warming, humorous, and thrilling, this sweeping portrait of bravery will capture your heart and inspire.

The “Odd Hours, No Pay, Cool Hat” filmmaking team is led by Co-Director, DP & Producer Gary Matoso, Co-Director & Editor Cameron Zohoori, Executive Producer Peter Yoakum, Casting Director & Associate Producer Louise Colette Matoso, and Composer Dillon Byron. 

To support the film in theatres and follow it's journey: www.oddhoursfilm.com

View New Trailer: “august at twenty-two” Starring Ali Edwards, Lilli Kay, Jorge Felipe Guevara, and Clay Singer with a Release on July 25th

Director: Sophia
Writer: Ali Edwards
Starring; Ali Edwards
Runtime: 1 hour 28 minutes

august at twenty-two will be released July 25th across North American in USA & Canada for a TVOD/Digital on all platforms through Gravitas Ventures

Cal, a floundering actress, must reevaluate her priorities when she discovers that her childhood “soulmate,” Jacob, has a serious girlfriend, Emily. Feeling unfulfilled by disappointing auditions, pressure to succeed (whatever that means), and failed attempts to reconnect with Jacob, Cal seeks a new companion in Emily. As Cal gets swept up in her exciting new social life, she begins neglecting her best friend Bobby, who is becoming increasingly concerned about her rapidly changing focus. As Bobby and Cal's friendship disintegrates, so does Cal's sense of self. Meanwhile, her relationship with Em develops in unexpected and incendiary ways.

A Lady Parts Productions presents august at twenty-two, is in many ways a cinematic sibling to the work of Greta Gerwig, Sofia Coppola, and Lena Dunham’s revolutionary HBO series Girls. Written by Ali Edwards ; Directed by Sophia Castuera; Produced by Mary Elizabeth Monda; with Director of Photography Melina Valdez; and Edited by Amir Mosallaie.

Lady Parts Productions was founded by Ali Edwards, Mary Elizabeth Monda and Sophia Castuera, three fierce advocates for creating positive social change through their work.