Stark Media Services was proud to celebrate Black History Month in February 2022 with this special display highlighting the presence of diverse voices in our film collection. We aimed to illustrate the mammoth impact African American creators have had on the history of film, from their presence in the foundations of the medium with the Pioneers of African American Cinema set, to Sidney Poitier's groundbreaking career redefining what kind of characters African American actors could portray on-screen, to the revolutionary work filmmakers like Julie Dash, Charles Burnett, and Spike Lee have done in the arthouse space, to the undervalued contemporary work in front of and behind the camera in the development of our most treasured mainstream and genre fare. We sought with these highlights to motivate students and faculty to further engage with film history and continue the growing conversations on the immeasurable impact these films and filmmakers have had on history and culture.
You can explore the films and filmmakers spotlighted below, where you will find lists of the films and books that were featured on the display along with links to their PittCat pages where you can request them, learn more about their credits, and more!
“When I look through the viewfinder, I’m looking at different histories...I’m responding to a history of a people and a place.”
Bradford Young began his career pushing the boundaries of the cinematographic form with independent icons like Ava Duvernay, David Lowery, and Dee Rees before becoming the first African American director of photography nominated for the Academy Award for Best Cinematography for his work on the 2016 film Arrival. He painted on his largest canvas yet in the 2018 film Solo: A Star Wars Story, becoming the first African American director of photography on a Star Wars film.