January 31, 2024
Thom Carroll/for PhillyVoice
The Philadelphia Film Center, at 1412 Chestnut St., will screen several movies that relate to the Black experience during its Black Cinema Weekend. The event also includes meetups for filmmakers.
The Philadelphia Film Society is beginning its 2024 programming with a celebration of Black cinema that includes screenings and mixers. The arts organization's Philadelphia Film Center will host a Black Cinema Weekend, which will include screenings and networking sessions.
The arts organization's Philadelphia Film Center will host Black Cinema Weekend from Thursday, Feb. 1 through Sunday, Feb. 4. Each day offers different programs showcasing noteworthy Black filmmakers, with a few networking opportunities for local filmmakers in between.
A screening of "A Powerful Thang," a 1991 romantic drama directed by Zeinabu irene Davis, headlines Thursday's events. Friday begins with a Creatives of Color Mixer, a free 90-minute networking event before a screening of John Singleton's 1991 classic "Boyz n the Hood."
Later that night, "Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song" by Melvin Van Peebles, often credited as the first blaxploitation film, will be shown.
Saturday begins with a meetup for Black women filmmakers and media professionals. Screenings of "Losing Ground," the first feature film directed by a Black woman in more than 50 years, and "Eve's Bayou" will follow.
Later, participants are invited to trivia and family-friendly activities before a free screening of "Big George Foreman." The screening is a collaboration between the Film Society and the Greater Enon Missionary Baptist Church in North Philly.
The weekend ends with showings of "Cane River" and "Chameleon Street" on Sunday.
Unless stated otherwise, every screening is its own ticketed event. People also can purchase bundles, which give access to two screenings.
The other Film Society locations – the Bourse Theater and PFS East – are screening Oscar-nominated films "Poor Things," "Godzilla Minus One," "The Zone of Interest" and "The Boy and the Heron," along with recent release "Mean Girls" this weekend.
