Hey, everyone! Welcome back to Culture Canvas.
One of the many events happening in the D this week is the Detroit Black Film Festival. Now in its fifth year, the showcase includes 57 independent shorts and full-length films from 13 countries and the continent of Africa in categories–from documentaries, dramas, to comedies.
Films will be shown Wednesday through Sunday primarily at venues in Detroit. The Carr Center, 15 E. Kirby, will screen the documentaries, while most of the narrative short films will screen at the Michigan State University Detroit Center, 3408 Woodward Avenue. A majority of the feature films will play at the Marlene Boll Theatre inside the Downtown Detroit YMCA, 1401 Broadway, and Emagine Theater Royal Oak, 200 N. Main Street.
The 11th edition of “Taste of Black Spirits National Conference: The Cocktail Concierge,” will be held alongside the festival, offering an array of handcrafted cocktails. Ronald Isley, the frontman of R&B group The Isley Brothers will be in attendance to promote his Liquid Gold XO Brandy, “Contagious.” The conference will feature speakers and panel events with entrepreneurs in the spirits industry. “Taste of Black Spirits” will be held Thursday to Saturday at the DoubleTree Suites, 525 W. Lafayette Blvd.
A one-day festival pass is $35, while a pass for all five days, plus the awards ceremony is $100. Tickets are $225 for both the film festival and “Taste of Black Spirits” conference.
I talked with the film festival co-founders, husband and wife duo Lazar and Marshalle Favors, on what to expect.
Editor’s note: This interview was lightly edited for length and clarity.
BridgeDetroit: What’s new to the festival this year?
Marshalle: One big difference is that “Taste of Black Spirits” is a national conference this year, and we’re bringing in people from all around the world on both sides, with the film festival as well as the conference, and the theme is “Cinema, Culture and Cocktails.”
Lazar: Our good friends over at Fixins (Soul Kitchen Detroit) are sponsoring our honors and awards ceremony Sunday. And this is the very first year that we are adding an honorees component. We’re honoring filmmakers, actors and producers from Detroit that are producing high quality films. Some of those folks are Brian Sullivan Taylor, Rockey and Janaya Black, Jezar Riches and Grover McCants.
BridgeDetroit: How do you select the films that will be a part of the festival?
Lazar: We get 300 submissions or more a year and we watch every single one of them collectively. The process is very, very rigorous.
Our submissions open in December, and close at the end of May. So, we’re watching films all the way until it’s time to choose them. There’s 10 things that we consider (like production value and sound). Anything (rated) under a seven, we already know that those films will not be in the selection process.
Marshalle: For us, it comes down to two things: It’s the story and it is the overall entertainment quality. Is this a film that our audience is going to enjoy?
BridgeDetroit: What are some of the Detroit films that are part of the lineup?
Lazar: Christine Swanson, who is from Detroit, has her feature film, “Albany Road.” Marshalle is leading that screening at the Emagine Theater Thursday. It’s an exclusive screening and it’s never been screened in Detroit.
Marshalle: Two years ago, she did a writing workshop here and it was very well received. And she mentioned that she was writing a script and it was starring Renée Elise Goldsberry, who grew up in Detroit, and Lynn Whitfield. And then she came back to Detroit and screened the rough cut with a small set of people. Now, she has the finished feature film.
We always have to highlight our own Detroit films. We have a number of films that have been created by Detroiters. One documentary that people are going to be excited to see is “Redemption Road,” which is based on the life of Yusef Bunchy Shakur.
BridgeDetroit: What are some things the two of you will be offering for the “Taste of Black Spirits” conference?
Lazar: We have over 100 Black-owned spirit brands coming to town; the owners and representatives of those brands, from whiskey to rum. This year, we’re also highlighting a Detroit brand called Black Eden 1912. It’s been in the market less than six months. We also have brands like Ron Isley again, but this year we also have our two-day education components called Liquid Forum. The first day we have a finance guru named Derrick Whitehead, so he’ll be doing a workshop and presentation on Thursday from 4-8 p.m. and then we have a “Spirited Women in Supply Chain” panel happening Friday morning. It’s going to be a week to remember.
As always, hope you enjoy the rest of your week!
Cheers,
Micah
313 Scene
- BridgeDetroit reporter Malachi Barrett wrote about the 83 productions the Detroit Film Office approved for projects in the city last year. The list shows how Detroit’s image is used to tell stories, like an Idris Elba-produced documentary on racism in the music industry, and sell products like Ford trucks and Crown Royal whiskey.
- Michigan’s first 3D-printed home in Detroit’s Islandview neighborhood will be ready to rent next month. Designed by Bryan Cook of Develop Architecture, the 1,000-square-foot, two-bedroom house will be available starting Oct. 15 for $1,850 per month. Using eco-friendly 3-D printing methods, the home minimizes waste and reduces its carbon footprint. (Detroit Metro Times)
What’s Going on in the D?
- Organization 1XMurals is hosting its annual Murals in Islandview event Monday through Saturday in the east side neighborhood. Ten Detroit artists such as Amy Fisher Price, Ijania Cortez and Phil Simpson will create nine murals and two installations. The event includes a Tuesday night meet-and-greet with the artists at UFO Bar and a Detroit Month of Design block party Saturday at Spot Lite.
- Also as part of the Detroit Month of Design, Bedrock, in collaboration with Shinola Hotel and Parker’s Alley retailers, will host Parker’s Alley in Bloom. The festival will run from Thursday to Sunday and feature floral installations, flower truck and bouquet giveaways, live art, specialty floral-themed cocktails and vendors.
- Pop star Sabrina Carpenter is bringing her “Short n’ Sweet” tour to Little Caesars Arena Thursday. There are still tickets available beginning at the steep price of $222.
- Iconic singer Stevie Wonder is hitting the road this fall as part of his “Sing Your Song! As We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart” tour. The Motown star will be visiting 10 cities in swing states like Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Georgia. Wonder will stop at Little Caesars Arena Oct. 22. Tickets start at $49.50.
- The Detroit Institute of Arts is hosting a conversation between artist Tiff Massey and award-winning filmmaker and writer dream hampton at 6 p.m. Thursday inside the museum’s Detroit Film Theatre. The talk will explore the themes behind Massey’s DIA exhibit “7 Mile + Livernois.” The event is free, but registration is recommended.
- Michigan Central and Newlab are celebrating the launch of its Art + Technology Residency program from 4-7 p.m. Saturday at Newlab. Artists include Simon Anton, Ash Arder, Leith Campbell, Michael Candy, Kristina Sheufelt and Wesley Taylor.
- The Witches Night Bazaar: Autumnal Equinox is back at Tangent Gallery in Detroit’s Milwaukee Junction neighborhood at 7 p.m. Saturday. Guests can check out the vendor’s market, grab some food and drinks and dance at the Witches Rave. Pre-sale tickets are available until Friday. Cost is $13.
Before you go…
Anchor Detroit, the latest community hub for the nonprofit Life Remodeled, is expected to open in July 2025.
The organization, which repurposes vacant school buildings to revitalize neighborhoods, acquired the former Winans Academy of Performing Arts on the city’s east side last year. Sixteen organizations such as the Metro Detroit Youth Clubs, United Way and Detroit Parent Network have already signed on to be tenants on the 7.55-acre site, Brandi Haggins, vice president of opportunity hubs for Life Remodeled, said at a Monday ceremony.
“We plan to serve over 18,000 Detroiters through youth programs, workforce development, arts and culture, health and wellness and tech,” she said. “Summer 2025 is really close. I cannot wait to tell the heartfelt stories of impact that will soon be made right here in this building.”
The ongoing progress of the Anchor Detroit project comes after the Detroit Public Schools Community District rejected multiple offers last year from Life Remodeled for a hub at the former Cooley High School amid concerns over the proposed sale price and sufficient commitments for the buildings and land. Life Remodeled CEO Chris Lambert talked about the failed deal at Monday’s ceremony, saying “God turned a bad decision into an incredible opportunity.”
Lambert said the organization is in the first phase of the project, raising $7.3 million. The goal is to raise another $2.7 million by the end of the year, he said. Meanwhile, funding for phase two is expected to start next year.
Tjwania Wilson, owner of Mama Tia’s Kitchen food truck, said she’s lived in the Denby neighborhood for 23 years. During that time, she’s seen the neighborhood go from a place where families knew each other to not knowing her neighbors at all.
Now, things are starting to turn back around and Wilson believes Anchor Detroit can help with the revitalization.
“I’m excited to see what this project brings to the community,” she said.
