MIA Magazine American Black Film Festival June 2016 | Page 6
6BB
AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO THE SUN SENTINEL
MONDAY, JUNE 13, 2016
ABFF NARRATIVE FEATURES “IN COMPETITION”
shooting of an unarmed teen by an
LAPD officer, with whom she is carrying
on an affair. To further complicate things,
a teenaged girl appears claiming to be
the daughter Abigail gave away at birth.
DESTINED
Destined tells the parallel stories of
Sheed and Rasheed (Cory Hardrict) as
they explore the idea of destiny as well
as how the smallest incident can become
a life-changing event. This film is written
and directed by Qasim Basir and
produced by Tommy Oliver, Rick
Rosenthal, and Matt Ratner. The cast is
rounded by Hill Harper, La La Anthony,
Curtiss Cook, among others.
EVERYTHING BUT A MAN
In Everything But A Man, writer
/director Nnegest Likké tells the story of
a successful career woman who has a
life-changing romance with a mysterious
man from another culture. His radical
lifestyle differences challenge her
perspective on love, relationships and
what it means to be a “strong” woman.
This movie features Monica Calhoun,
Jimmy Jean-Louis, and Camille Winbush.
THE FIX
Paris Bauldwin writes and directs The
Fix in which Abigail witnesses the
HOW TO TELL YOU’RE A DOUCHEBAG
Ray Livingston (Charles Brice) is a
relationship-blogging hack responsible
for Brooklyn’s infamous blog,
“Occasionally Dating Black Women.”
After a particularly crappy week, he goes
off on a tirade and harasses a gorgeous
random passerby, only to discover that
it’s Rochelle Marseille (DeWanda Wise),
one of New York’s up-and-coming
authors. Moving to make amends in an
effort to preserve his media clout, Ray is
stunned when Rochelle gives him more
than he ever thought she would.
SERVICE TO MAN
Service to Man tells the story of how
two outsiders from radically different
backgrounds struggle to find a common
purpose within the pressure cooker of
Nashville’s all-black medical school in
the 1960s. This Seth Panitch helmed film
was inspired by a true story and features
an ensemble includes Morgan Auld,
Christopher Livingston, Lamman Rucker
and Keith David.
ABFF NARRATIVE FEATURES “WORLD SHOWCASE”
Halfway
A recently released convict finds
himself trapped between his urban
criminal past and his new life on
probation as the only black man in a
conservative, white Wisconsin farming
town. Den Caird directed a cast that
included Quinton Aaron, Jeffrey
DeMunn, Gillian Zinser, Amy Pietz, TJ
Power and Marcus Henderson.
9 Rides
The film 9 Rides follows an Uber
driver (Missick) on New Year’s Eve
picking up nine different groups of
passengers, each helping him cope with
life-changing news. This is the first
feature film shot exclusively with the new
iPhone 6s. The film was written and
director by Matthew A. Cherry.
Finding Her *U.S. Premiere
Monique Watson goes missing.
Police are not doing anything to find a
lead. The mission drops on the desk of
journalist Christian Baker. This movie
features Johnny Whitworth, Maurice
McRae, Afton Williamson, Jeremy Holm,
Larry Pine and Danny Johnson. It was
written and directed by Vlad Feier.
Killing Lazarus
In Killing Lazarus viewers meet
childhood friends turned adult drug
dealers struggling to define what’s next
in their strained friendship. Anything but
typical, Killing Lazarus is unlike anything
you’ve seen. The Desmond Faisondirected feature includes Deji LaRay,
Tracey Dukes, Wade Maurice Johnson,
Jr., Robert Davis, Jahmela Biggs, Rome
Green, Jr., Amanuel Richards, Shayla
Hale and Billy Mayo.
Secrets
Secrets is a Juwan Lee-written film
that showcases a successful
businessman who has a sexual appetite
larger than what’s on his plate at home,
chaos erupts. Tarron’s irresistible
co-worker serves it up, while his wife,
who’s ironically named Secret, releases a
few secrets of her own. This thrilling flick
features Harold Moore, Denyce Lawton,
Denise Boutte, Dennis White and Tobias
Truvillion.
Illicit *World Premiere
Directed by Corey Grant, Illicit tells
the story of Sasha and Guy’s marriage.
The union is tested when sexy young
lovers, both with dark pasts and hidden
nefarious agendas, are independently
seduced by outside interests. The cast
members are David Ramsey, Shireen
Crutchfield, McKinley Freeman, Michele
Weaver, Lanett Tachel, Dean Cain, Vivica
A. Fox, Dionne Gipson, Michael Monks,
Essence Atkins, Vincent A. Ward, Sade
Kimora Young, Durrell “Tank” Babbs,
Charlie Farrell and Adam Senn.