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Hollywood Black Film Festival
The Hollywood Black Film Festival (HBFF), dubbed the "Black Sundance," is an annual six-day film festival held in Los Angeles, California dedicated to enhancing the careers of new and established black filmmaking professionals by bringing their work to the attention of the film industry, press and public. It is open to the public. Films screened at the festival include the 2006 documentary '' Bastards of the Party'', director John Singleton's box office blockbuster "''2 Fast 2 Furious''," the critically acclaimed "'' The Hurricane''" (starring Academy Award winner Denzel Washington), director Kasi Lemmons' "'' The Caveman's Valentine''" (starring Samuel L. Jackson), and director Reggie Rock Bythewood's "'' Dancing In September''." Attendance The festival attracts such stars and industry insiders as Academy Award winners Forest Whitaker and Sidney Poitier, John Singleton, Spike Lee, Cedric The Entertainer, George Tillman, Ice-T, Rev. Run (of Run DMC), Tina Andrews, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world's most populous megacities. Los Angeles is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Southern California. With a population of roughly 3.9 million residents within the city limits , Los Angeles is known for its Mediterranean climate, ethnic and cultural diversity, being the home of the Hollywood film industry, and its sprawling metropolitan area. The city of Los Angeles lies in a basin in Southern California adjacent to the Pacific Ocean in the west and extending through the Santa Monica Mountains and north into the San Fernando Valley, with the city bordering the San Gabriel Valley to it's east. It covers about , and is the county seat of Los Angeles County, which is the most populous county in the United States with an estim ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dancing In September
''Dancing in September'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television film written and directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood (in his directorial debut), who also produced with Reuben Cannon and Don Kurt. It stars Nicole Ari Parker and Isaiah Washington, alongside Vicellous Reon Shannon, Malinda Williams, Jay Underwood, Michael Cavanaugh, Mel Jackson, and Jenifer Lewis. It follows a struggling African-American television writer who gets her sitcom picked up by the neophyte WPX network through an executive producer hired specifically to develop shows aimed at the black market. The film premiered at the Hollywood Black Film Festival on February 24, 2000, and also screened at the Sundance Film Festival on February 3, 2001. It aired on HBO on February 3, 2001, and earned a Primetime Emmy Award nomination for the song "Welcome Back (All My Soulmates)". It was also nominated for two NAACP Image Awards and five Black Reel Awards, with Bythewood winning Outstanding Director and Outstand ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bill Duke
William Henry Duke Jr. (born February 26, 1943) is an American actor and film director. Known for his physically imposing frame, Duke works primarily in the action and crime drama genres often as a character related to law enforcement. Frequently a character actor, he has starred opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger in ''Commando'' and ''Predator'', and has appeared in films like ''American Gigolo'', ''No Man's Land'', '' Bird on a Wire'', ''Menace II Society'', ''Exit Wounds'', ''Payback'', '' X-Men: The Last Stand'', and ''Mandy''. In television, he is best known as Agent Percy Odell in ''Black Lightning''. He has directed episodes of numerous television series including ''Cagney & Lacey'', ''Dallas'', ''Hill Street Blues'', ''Miami Vice'', ''The Twilight Zone,'' and ''American Playhouse''. He has also directed the crime films ''Deep Cover'' and '' A Rage in Harlem'', for which he was nominated for a Palme d'Or, as well as the comedy ''Sister Act 2''. Early life and education Duke w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loretta Devine
Loretta Devine (born August 21, 1949) is an American actress, singer and voice actor. She is known for numerous roles across stage and screen. Her most high profile roles include Lorrell Robinson in the original Broadway production of ''Dreamgirls'', the long-suffering Gloria Matthews in the film ''Waiting to Exhale'', and her recurring role as Adele Webber on the medical drama ''Grey's Anatomy'', for which she won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series in 2011. Early life Loretta Devine was born in Houston, Texas, on August 21, 1949. She grew up in the Acres Homes area of Houston, where her mother was a single mother to six children. She was very active on the pep squad, and performed in talent shows at George Washington Carver High School. In 1971, Devine graduated from the University of Houston with a Bachelor of Arts in Speech and Drama. In 1976, she received a Master of Fine Arts in Theater from Brandeis University. She was initiated into ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rockmond Dunbar
Rockmond Dunbar (born January 11, 1973) is an American actor, best known for his roles as Baines on the NBC series '' Earth 2'', Kenny Chadway on Showtime family drama ''Soul Food'', and Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin on the Fox crime drama '' Prison Break''. He also played Sheriff Eli Roosevelt on the FX Drama series '' Sons of Anarchy'', FBI Agent Dennis Abbott on ''The Mentalist'', FBI Agent Abe Gaines in the Hulu series '' The Path'', and Michael Grant on '' 9-1-1''. Early life and education Dunbar was born January 11, 1973, in Oakland, California. He attended Oakland Technical High School and graduated from Morehouse College before moving on to study at the College of Santa Fe and the University of New Mexico. Career Television Dunbar is known for his leading role as Kenny Chadway on the television series ''Soul Food'', and ''TV Guide'' named him as one of "Television's 50 Sexiest Stars of All Time". He landed a regular role as Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin on the t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sanaa Lathan
Sanaa McCoy Lathan (born September 19, 1971) is an American actress. She is the daughter of actress Eleanor McCoy and film director Stan Lathan. Her career began after she appeared in the shows In the House (TV series), ''In the House'', ''Family Matters'', ''NYPD Blue'', and ''Moesha''. Lathan later garnered further prominence after starring in the 1998 superhero film ''Blade (1998 film), Blade''; which followed with film roles in ''The Best Man (1999 film), The Best Man'' (1999), ''Love & Basketball'' (2000), ''Disappearing Acts'' (2000), and ''Brown Sugar (2002 film), Brown Sugar'' (2002). In 2004, Lathan's performance in the Broadway theatre, Broadway revival of ''A Raisin in the Sun'', earned her a nomination at the Tony Award, Tony Awards for Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play, Best Featured Actress in a Play. Following this, she played the role of List of Alien vs. Predator characters, Alexa "Lex" Woods in the movie ''Alien vs. Predator (film), Alien vs. Predat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blair Underwood
Blair Erwin Underwood (born August 25, 1964) is an American actor. He made his debut in the 1985 musical film ''Krush Groove'' and from 1987 to 1994 starred as attorney Jonathan Rollins in the NBC legal drama series ''L.A. Law''. Underwood has appeared in a number of films during his career, including '' Just Cause'' (1995), '' Set It Off'' (1996), '' Deep Impact'' (1998), ''Rules of Engagement'' (2000), '' Something New'' (2006), ''Madea's Family Reunion'' (2006), and '' Juanita'' (2019). On television, he played a leading role in the 2000 medical drama '' City of Angels'', and also had regular roles in ''High Incident'' (1996-97), ''LAX'' (2004–05), ''Dirty Sexy Money'' (2007–09), ''In Treatment'' (2008), ''The Event'' (2010–11), '' Ironside'' (2013) and '' Quantico'' (2016–18). Underwood has received two Golden Globe Award nominations, five NAACP Image Awards, one Daytime Emmy Award, and one Grammy Award. Early life Underwood was born in Tacoma, Washington, the son of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anthony Anderson
Anthony Anderson (born August 15, 1970) is an American actor, comedian and game show host. He is best known for his leading roles in drama series such as Marlin Boulet on '' K-Ville'', and as NYPD Detective Kevin Bernard on the NBC crime drama ''Law & Order'' and comedy sitcom television series ''Guys with Kids'' as well as leading roles in comedy series such as Andre 'Dre' Johnson on ''Black-ish''. He had major roles in feature films such as ''Me, Myself & Irene'' (2000), ''Kangaroo Jack'' (2003), '' Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London'' (2004), ''The Departed'' (2006), ''Transformers'' (2007), and ''Scream 4'' (2011). Anderson is also a regular judge on Food Network's '' Iron Chef America'' and also has more roles on other television programs such as ''All About the Andersons'', ''The Bernie Mac Show'', and ''The Shield''. Since June 2016, he has served as host of the ABC version of the game show '' To Tell the Truth''. In addition, he has served as a guest panelist for vari ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reuben Cannon
Reuben Cannon (born February 11, 1946 ) is an American film producer and casting director. Cannon was the first black casting director in Hollywood; he was the head of television casting for Warner Brothers from 1977 to 1978, and started his own casting agency in 1978 (Reuben Cannon & Associates). Through this company, he has cast nearly 100 television series, made-for-TV movies, and feature films. He won the Artios Award for Best Casting for Feature Film—Drama for ''The Color Purple'', which was the feature film debut of Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ... (both of whom earned Oscar nominations for these roles), and an early film of Danny Glover. Cannon has also worked as a producer on most of Tyler Perry's television shows and mov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
George Tillman Jr
George Tillman Jr. (born January 26, 1969) is an American filmmaker. Tillman is most notable for directing the films ''Soul Food'' (1997) and ''Men of Honor'' (2000). He is also the producer of '' Soul Food: The Series'' on television and the four films in the ''Barbershop'' series: '' Barbershop'', '' Barbershop 2: Back in Business'', ''Beauty Shop'' and '' Barbershop: The Next Cut''. He directed the 2009 biopic '' Notorious'', about the late Brooklyn-born rapper The Notorious B.I.G., and directed and produced the drama ''The Hate U Give'' (2018). Tillman was nominated for the Black Film Award for Best Director for ''Soul Food'' (1997). Tillman was also nominated for the Black Reel Award for Best Director and Best Screenplay for ''Notorious'' (2009). Early life Tillman was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His father, George Tillman, worked at the American Motors plant in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and his mother was a secretary.Alexander, George. Why We Make Movies. Random House, Inc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cedric The Entertainer
Cedric Antonio Kyles (born April 24, 1964), better known by his stage name Cedric the Entertainer, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He hosted BET's ''ComicView'' during the 1993–1994 season and ''Def Comedy Jam'' in 1995. He is best known for co-starring with Steve Harvey on The WB Television Network, The WB sitcom ''The Steve Harvey Show'', as one of ''The Original Kings of Comedy'', and for starring as Eddie Walker in ''Barbershop (film), Barbershop''. He hosted the 12th season of the daytime version of ''Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (American game show), Who Wants to Be a Millionaire'' in 2013–14 and starred in the TV Land original series ''The Soul Man'', which aired from 2012 to 2016. He has also done voice work for ''Ice Age (franchise), Ice Age'', the Madagascar (franchise), ''Madagascar'' film series, ''Charlotte's Web (2006 film), Charlotte's Web'', Planes (franchise), ''Planes'' and ''Planes: Fire & Rescue''. He currently stars on the CBS sitcom ''The Ne ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
