You can find these great films made by Black women online
Alfre Woodard in “Clemency,” from Chinonye Chukwu.
With Black History Month in February and Women’s History Month in March, it’s a good time to check out some of the best films available to stream made by Black women.
One of the best film debuts of 2020 was the “Forty-Year-Old Version,” written and directed by and starring Radha Blank. An autobiographical film about a playwright dabbling in rap, Blank’s film is a funny, fresh and an incisive take on how Black art, especially made by women, is received by white critics and gatekeepers. Watch it on Netflix.
Oscar-winning actor Regina King made her directorial debut in 2020 with “One Night in Miami,” streaming on Amazon Prime. The film features an epic one-night hang sesh among Sam Cooke, Malcolm X, Cassius Clay and Jim Brown. King and the actors have already been nominated for several awards.
Another awards-nominated 2020 directorial debut: Channing Godfrey Peoples’ Texas-set family drama “Miss Juneteenth,” starring Nicole Beharie in a role that finally allows her to demonstrate the full range of her enormous talent. It’s a soulful slice of life not to be missed. Watch it on Kanopy, or rent it for $2.99 on Amazon or YouTube.
2020 also marked the first year a Black woman helmed a big-budget action film, with Gina Prince-Bythewood directing the sci-fi comic book adaptation “The Old Guard,” starring Charlize Theron as an ancient warrior leading a special forces team. Exciting new stars Kiki Layne, Luca Marinelli and Marwan Kenzari co-star across from Theron and Matthias Schoenaerts in this exciting action flick that boasts a rich lore. Watch it on Netflix.
Director Ava DuVernay has become a household name for her film work, and her distribution imprint Array has brought many independent films from creators of color to a wider audience. Watch her documentary “13th,” about the prison-industrial complex and systemic racism in America, on Netflix, or rent her Martin Luther King, Jr. biopic, “Selma,” starring David
Oyelowo, for $2.99 on Amazon or YouTube.
Chinonye Chukwu’s film “Clemency” also grapples with the stark realities of the U.S. prison system, starring Alfre Woodard as a warden overseeing death row executions, facing the reality of an incarcerated man (Aldis Hodge) who desperately wants to live. Watch it on Hulu, or rent it for $3.99 on Amazon or YouTube.
Nia DaCosta made her debut with the Tessa Thompson-starring “Little Woods,” on Hulu and Kanopy, or $3.99 digital rental.
The film explores the border between Canada and a North Dakota oil boom town, where two sisters struggle to get on their feet.
On Netflix, Dee Rees’ Oscar-nominated 2017 film “Mudbound” is about two Mississippi sharecropping families, white and Black, the racist beliefs that divide them and the world war that demonstrates a different, more egalitarian way of life.
On HBO Max, watch Kasi Lemmons’ Oscar-nominated 2019 film “Harriet,” with Cynthia Erivo as abolitionist Harriet Tubman.
Travel leaders say they support all efforts to rid the world of the coronavirus pandemic — except for a mandate that would require airline passengers to present a negative COVID-19 test before flying.
The CEOs of American, United, Southwest, Alaska and JetBlue airlines met with White House officials recently in a virtual meeting to discuss the proposal, and all of them — as well as key industry figures — say such a mandate would do more harm than good for U.S. carriers.
“We had a very positive, constructive conversation focused on our shared commitment to sciencebased policies as we work together to end the pandemic, restore air travel and lead our nation toward recovery,” said Nick Calio, head of the trade group Airlines for America.
The meeting was arranged after Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and officials with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that such a testing requirement was under consideration.
The Southwest Airlines pilots’ union said a testing mandate “would decimate domestic air travel demand, put aviation jobs at risk, and create serious unintended consequences.”
U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger
Dow said the high cost and low availability of testing make a domestic testing mandate a challenging concept to put into practice.
“Based on January 2021 data, a testing requirement for domestic air travel would necessitate a 42 percent increase in daily testing capacity nationwide —a substantial use of testing resources when air travel has already been shown to be safer than many other routine activities,” Dow said.
Jesse Posey said that one of the perks of “Selena: The Series” is filming on location. Posey portrays Selena Quintanilla’s guitarist and husband, Chris Perez, in the Netflix series. “We filmed mostly in Rosarito, Mexico,” said the 26-yearold actor, who is Mexican American. “Then (we shot) quite a bit in Tijuana and a few times in Ensenada. Ensenada stood out to me because my grandparents used to own a house there on the beach. I was only 5 the last time I was there, so I don’t remember much. But I thought it was dope to be back there. Mexico is awesome. I might have to move there.” Based out of Burbank, California, Posey stays in touch with his fans on Instagram (@jpose13).
Q: How are you dealing with not being able to easily hop on a plane during this pandemic?
A: I’ve been taking walks and drives with just me and my music. I have taken a few trips — road-tripped to Utah with a few friends to do a little camping and (took) a short trip to Arizona to do a little drinking.
Q: If you had travel plans last year and had to cancel, where were they to?
A: I was going to go to Miami with my best friend to watch the Miami Dolphins play. Unfortunately, we were unable to. So, Miami 2021!
Q: I am not sure if you have ever faced racism because of your heritage. Was it eye-opening to play Chris Perez and see
how Selena had to overcome so many barriers?
A: I am very lucky to have never faced racism in my life, though I have seen it. Selena did face racism, but she also faced the troubles of being a big star. And piling those two on top of each other must have been a great challenge. But Selena was the kind of person who was ready to face anything. Though she had her own insecurities, she would never let racism get in her way. She was above it. She knew her worth. She had the support of her fans, her family and her husband.
Q: What is your favorite vacation destination?
A: That’s a tough one. Mexico is great. Great people. Great food. Great mezcal. But I did go to the United Kingdom for about two weeks and we hit a lot of different towns, London being one of them, for about a day. We found
ourselves on the west end of town, I think. Hard to remember. Lots of Guinness. But we kicked it at this bar that sat alongside a river and we just hung there and drank beer as the sun set. Beautiful time.
Q: What is your best and/or worst vacation memory?
A: Best was going with my brother (actor Tyler Posey) a few years ago to Toronto, where we once briefly lived as kids. One night, we drank a lot and stayed up till 10 in the morning the next day, cruising through town (and) messing around. It was a real brother moment. The worst was probably the hangover after I woke up. Just kidding. I never have a bad time on a vacation. How could you? It’s vacation.
Q: Where would you like to go that you have never been to before?
A: Ireland!