Want to experience contemporary Black Hollywood when you visit LA? For six days each June, Hollywood Black Film Festival (HBFF) represents the best intersection of Black Indie Cinema with the business of Hollywood. Founded by Tanya Kersey, HBFF is a showcase of talent, creativity, preparation and determination to get the best possible Indie films made and presented, despite challenging budgets. Its open to the general public.

    Having earned her stripes as a Producer, Journalist, Author, Speaker, Movie Industry Coach and Consultant, when Tanya Kersey speaks, people listen. Under her vision and stewardship since its inception in 1999, HBFF has screened 721 independent films, hundreds of conference sessions and attracted 50,000 patrons from around the block and around the world. Although HBFF includes a few Hollywood films, its hallmark is screening Indie documentaries, student films, short films, feature films and animated films in a variety of distinctive Beverly Hills theatres. Giving away my Old School perspective, I was astounded at the overall quality of films presented compared to Hollywood Blaxploitation movies of the 1970s. Better story, acting and directing with fewer continuity errors. For example, Dough Boys, a low budget flick by Hollywood standards, was well written, directed and acted. We’ve come a long way baby!

 

    There’s LOL for Tanya and HBFF. Over the years, Hollywood celebs such as the great Sidney Poitier, Forest Whitaker, John Singleton, Cedric The Entertainer, George Tillman, Ice-T, Bill Duke, Loretta Devine, Derek Luke, Obba Babatunde, Anthony Anderson, Blair Underwood, Vanessa Bell Callaway, Sanaa Lathan, Richard Brooks, Preston Whitmore, Don Welch, Vanessa Williams, Giancarlo Esposito, Michael Beach, Eric LaSalle, Clifton Powell, Gina Ravera and too many others to mention have lent their support.

    HBFF Infotainment Conference featured dozens of informational seminars, actor & writer workshops and more than 100 Hollywood insiders participating in talk-show style panels. I got a thrill seeing industry legends Judy Pace and Nichelle Nichols interact with attendees and hearing director Benny Boom explain why he removed all 88 references of the “N-word” from his Next Day Air movie. A veteran supporter of the festival, producer-director-actor Bill Duke dropped many pearls of wisdom in his panel discussion, as did veteran TV director Oz Scott.

    Though less sexy than many other panels, the Doing Business with Show Business panel was most important to young directors and producers learning how to structure deals to be pitched. And the Pitchathon session, gave aspiring filmmakers one-on-one time with studio execs. Film Finance is another indispensable session for attendees to dialog with industry veterans on the journey to getting deals financed. So if you’re an aspiring writer, director or producer, you might want to settle for one drink and a Shirley Temple when rubbing shoulders in the lounge after these sessions.

    The well-attended Storyteller Competitions featured the annual Live Staged Reading of three finalist scripts by Loretta Divine, Obba Babatunde, Vivian Vanderwerd and several emerging actors who rapturously captivated the audience. Those fortunate three were selected from among dozens of scripts submitted by a cross-section of screenwriters who described Black Diaspora life stories, both personal and vicarious, from which they drew creative inspiration. Meanwhile, Michael Beach and Eric LaSalle held court at the Actors Bootcamp panel. It gave better context to my brief conversations with emerging actors Julia Pace Mitchell, G. Tyler, Lloyd Collins, and Kerisse Hutchinson, who is tailor-made for a Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes biopic.

    HBFF participates in Indie-Fest to market Independent films online. Festival attendees got to watch select HBFF movies for free online at their time of choosing, then share their online opinions with the filmmakers and festival judges. Competing against six other HBFF film selections, The Tenant movie (not to be confused with another same-name movie) won the 2009 HBFF Indie-Fest Online competition for best picture to win a 90/10 Distribution Deal.

    My festival favorite was the Notorious movie panel discussion. Moderated by the casting director of Notorious, Twinkie Byrd, the panel consisting of George Tillman, Jr. (director), Jamal Woolard (Biggie Smalls), Derek Luke (Sean Combs), Naturi Naughton (Lil Kim), Dennis White (D-Rock), Charles Malik Whitfield (Wayne Barrow) and Julia Pace Mitchell (mother of Biggie’s first child and real-life daughter of Judy Pace) fielded a wide range of questions about their journeys, including many tips aspiring actors can apply to their careers. Too bad Angela Bassett (Biggie’s mom), Anthony Mackie (Tupac Shakur), and Antonique Smith (Faith Evans) were unable to attend.

    As always, lounge networking is a place to take one’s game to the next level. This year’s festival host, Crowne Plaza Hotel in Beverly Hills had plenty of seats and attentive staff that invited lots of conference attendees to drop in before and after screenings, panels and workshops for networking and socializing. Did I forget to mention the slamming after-parties? No experience of contemporary Black Hollywood is complete without them!

Toronto

Columbia

Las Vegas