Hollywood Black Film Festival 2009

What people fear most about dying is being in pain. And there is good cause for this fear, because a large percentage of Americans die in terrible and unnecessary pain. Latrice Warren understands this well. She is a registered nurse at the University Medical Trauma Center and has been taking care of her ailing father for the past three months. He is suffering from Prostate Cancer and lived the best life a man could ever live. We examine the effects of losing a love one to a disease that is common among American men. This film stars GREG ALAN WILLIAMS (W, Remember The Titans, Dirty Laundry) and LESLIE 'BIg Lez' SEGAR (BET, Rap City, Fabric of a Man)

A hopeful music video that explores the challenges that many African American women face in their quest to find love. Have you found your 1 out of 10? Artist - Tanya Alexander Vocalist - Julio Hanson

Friendship, secrets, tragedy, forgiveness, seven strangers and one girl's final breaking point. In this affecting story about love and loss, best friends Kriss (Melony Kazikstan) and Tim (Harold Warren) experience their first and only intimate night alone. A momentary lapse in judgment threatens to rupture not only their friendship but their future. Resonating with emotional accuracy, ACQUIRED proves the complexity between friendship and desire and examines the choices we make under the extraordinary circumstances of our every day lives and the consequences that follow.

Adam is a loner rich kid drug dealer, after a fight at a party in which he is helped by an old friend and fellow drug dealer (Mike). Adam, Mike and his girlfriend Jaz decide to put a monopoly on their local drug market. Only problem is they have no idea who did so they decide to play one final card up their sleeve.

Being a kid can be tricky. Just ask Afia. She's a misunderstood 9-year old Michael Jackson fanatic whose unusual antics get her kicked out of private school. Afia, the hot-tempered, force to be reckoned with is thrust into the public school system once and for all. Unlike what Afia expects, public school is not a walk in the park. Over-bearing teachers and guidance councilors, detention, rules, parents…the bully. Yes, a bully that is bigger, badder, and smarter then Afia, who would of thought? How will Afia deal with this new crisis, she wants her respect but she can't afford to mess up, what will her parents think, what school will she get hauled off to next. Afia's next move better be a smart one.

When his father's body is stolen from its grave, Afro Samurai (Samuel L. Jackson) is forced to pick up his sword and wreak bloody vengeance against an army of deadly foes led by Lady Sio (Lucy Liu), a beautiful and sadistic mastermind from his past.

Introduced by the legendary actor, Sir Sidney Poitier, ARTISTS OF THE BAHAMAS is a feature documentary film that explores the lives and creative works of key visual artists whose talents contributed to the initial art movement in the Bahamas. These masters of Bahamian Art work from their studios, homes, on-site and in various Family Island locations. They are acknowledged amongst their artistic peers and their names resound Internationally: Amos Ferguson, Kendal Hanna, Max Taylor, Brent Malone, Eddie Minnis, Dave Smith, Stan Burnside, Jackson Burnside, Antonius Roberts, John Beadle and John Cox. The artists speak of their early influences; Jackson Burnside wanted to be a doctor until an aging art teacher inspired him otherwise; John Cox remembers growing up in an architect-designed house that subconsciously taught him to think in terms of space and structure from an early age; Max Taylor drives around his old neighborhood and remembers the powerful matriarchs who held his community together. Interviews are inter-cut with images of the artists' works and we learn about the creative process that goes into their paintings, woodcuts, sculptures, and installations. The artists talk about the techniques they use to execute their ideas, from traditional brushes and charcoal, to palette knives, found objects, chainsaws and electronic media. Eddie Minnis took up the palette knife in perference to brushes, developing his own unique way of capturing landscapes. John Beadle used cardboard and staples to create sculptures of life-sized human figures and hung hundreds of machettes from fishing lines attached to the ceiling. These works display their range of talent from the versatility of formally trained Brent Malone to the brilliantly simple paintings of intuitive artist and story teller, Amos Ferguson. ARTISTS OF THE BAHAMAS examines how history influenced the artists, some of who grew up under Colonialism and absorbed the idea that 'local' was a lesser form of culture. Many went on to express their pride in Bahamian culture through Junkanoo, a festival that Brent Malone in paticular promoted as an art form, or through installiations such as Antonius Roberts' series of outdoor sculptures that honors African ancestry on historical sites. Some artists formed galleries and art groups that helped others gain recognition, such as Stan Burnside's creative 'Jammin' sessions where several artists worked on the same painting. Dave Smith was influenced in a different way by history because of his childhood in England. As an outsider but not a colonial, his paintings intrigrate his alternative artistic vision. Abstract artist Kendal Hanna was one of the first artists to be apprenticed to the Chelsea Pottery in Nassau, learning pottery before he went into painting. ARTISTS OF THE BAHAMAS uses still photos, archival footage and interviews to tell the story of the individuals who have created the art movement in the Bahamas. Music is an intricate part of life in the Bahamas. The sound track includes compositions by the legendary Bahamian musician 'Peanuts' Taylor and the young virtuoso drummer Ruppa-Pum-pum. The documentary concludes with the colorful vibrant energy of Junkanoo, a great African/Bahamian festival held at Christmas and New Year that rivals both New Orleans' Mardi Gras and Brazils' Carnival in importance. Sir Sidney Poitier, raised on Cat Isand in the Bahamas, introduces his fellow Bahamian artists & celebrates their masterful contributions to the world of Art.