The World, the Flesh and the Devil

Just found a bootleg dvd of the 1959 film, "The World, the Flesh and the Devil" directed by Ranald MacDougall and starring Harry Belafonte. This is a "last man on earth" genre film and it seems this film was "inspired" by a story by M.P. Shiel called "The Purple Cloud." M.P. Shiel is interesting because he was the son of an Irish Methodist minister and formerly enslaved "Mulatta" from the Caribbean. From things I've been able to find thus far, he was never perceived as a person of mixed heritage and passed as a "white" man. Will get to the book soon and do a comparison of the two stories...

Speculative Race Film???

Chloe, early black speculative film, starring Molly Day, a Race film about a "Black Voodoo Mistress."

It's been 2 years since officially began the Invisible Universe documentary... and so far, I've read alot of books, watched alot of films, and have met and interviewed alot of people.

Radio Interview for W.U.R.D. 900 AM Philly

Philly is a really interesting place. It kind of reminds me of where I grew up in Newark, New Jersey. Its a place with a large African American population and this is no statistic I've looked up. I can see it. Its a mix of struggle and progress like my homecity. Black folk who are caught up in the mess of poverty and racism and Black folk who are very progressive. Its like one time I was there documenting a Black SF panel one minute and the next minute there a police car chase going on between Temple University and the railroad station. (Compliments to Sheree Renee Thomas for that bit of info) Anyway another way its like Newark is that it has access to a local radio station which has an element of progressive Black programming. I remember growing up listening to Gary Imhotep Byrd first on a local station in Jersey and then at the old WLIB. So its a few days before I am to participate in a Blacks in SF writing panel at Temple and I get an email from Maurice Waters of Black SCI FI.COM about being on a radio show to promote the panel. So here I sat one night, sweaty and dirty (I was in the middle of my capoeira class) sitting in the hall of the new Alvin Ailey Studios in NYC on my cell phone being interviewed by the host Jeffrey Hart.

Black to the Future SF Festival, Seattle, Washington

How in the hell did we do it?! This was a really big deal. I and my Director of Photography (or videography), Yvie Raij came to the northwest corner of the continental United States with a bunch of heavy equipment to document a 4 day monumental event. So these wonderful folk of color mostly at the CD Forum in Washington State got some money to put this festival together. They called it Black to the Future: A Black Science Fiction Festival for 3 days, 11 - 13 June 2004. I heard about it, got in contact with them, and figured out a way to get out here. They also invited me to show a trailer and speak on a panel about my project. Can I say nervous? Anyway did and made it through, but some of the events and people they brought together: Octavia Butler, Walter Mosley, Tananarive Due, Steven Barnes, Beth Coleman, The founders of The Carl Brandon Society, etc. Panels on literature, music, film, workshops on writing SF novels and comics, book signings and vendors room. Too bad this was just a one time event. It really should go on every year. One little note, as of this writing there seems to be a large representation of black folk in the genre in the part of the country, Butler, JT Stewart (Clarion West), Due and Barnes, Nisi Shawl and Ian Hagemann of the Carl Brandon Society. It is quite beautiful out here I have to say. I must keep that in mind too! Big Shout Out to Doug for letting us crash at his place while we were there! I won't forget your kindness man!

A New Frontier at Howard University

This is just the beginning. I've undertaken to do a really big project. How about that for my first documentary? So the idea is that I want to document, reveal and share the history of black representations in speculative fiction throughout its history. What is speculative fiction? Well its just an easier and shorter way to say, science fiction, horror and fantasy. For me its really just having some kind of fantastical element, whether its supernatural or magical realism, to tell a what if, if only or if this goes on kind of story. I've decided to start big too! Heard about the conference at Howard University, made contact with the organizer, Dr. Gregory Hampton and came down with a camera and an idea. Its a two day event and I haven't been to DC since I was a child on a school trip but I'm pretty resourceful and have decided to take it as it comes.