“Spirits of Rebellion,” the award-winning documentary film about a small group of critically acclaimed black filmmakers and media artists named the “Los Angeles Rebellion,” will be shown at Cal State San Bernardino on Thursday, April 27.
The free screening will be at 6 p.m. at the university’s John M. Pfau Library, room PL 5005, and will include a discussion with the film’s director, Zeinabu irene Davis.
According to the “Spirits of Rebellion” website, the Los Angeles Rebellion was the “first sustained movement in the United States by a collective of minority filmmakers that aimed to reimagine the production process so as to represent, reflect on, and enrich the day-to-day lives of people in their own communities. All of the filmmakers associated with this movement attended UCLA between the ‘Watts riots’ of 1965 and the ‘urban uprising’ in Los Angeles that followed the Rodney King verdict in 1992, but black film students at UCLA and beyond continue to look to this group of filmmakers for inspiration, filmmaking advice, and practical guidance.
“Independent filmmakers, grassroots media makers, and various media artists in the U.S. have found the example of the LA Rebellion School of Filmmakers to be an inspiring example of commitment to the medium of film as a tool for imaginative art and transformative storytelling,” the film’s website says.
“Spirits of Rebellion,” released in 2016, won the Best Diaspora Documentary Award at the African Movie Academy Awards and Best Feature Documentary at the San Diego Film Awards.
The screening is presented by CSUSB Department of English; English Club; Black Faculty, Staff, and Student Association; University Diversity Committee; and the CSUSB Intellectual Life Fund.
A preview of the film is online at “Spirits of Rebellion Trailer.” Also, follow it on Facebook at “Spirits of Rebellion: Black Cinema at UCLA.”
For more information on the event, contact Jason Magabo Perez, assistant professor of English, at jason.perez@csusb.edu