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By Indie Means Necessary

BlackStar Projects, home of the annual BlackStar Film Festival, celebrates and provides platforms for visionary Black, Brown, and Indigenous artists.

Twitter

@BlackStarFest - 1 day

Submissions for the tenth annual BlackStar Film Festival are now open! Early deadline is February 10 and the final… https://t.co/8Pny9durNy

@BlackStarFest - 1 day

This year-long event supports BlackStar as we celebrate the 10th edition of our film festival this August! Learn mo… https://t.co/rrRIO0NoSR

Instagram

Submissions for the 10th annual BlackStar Film Fes Submissions for the 10th annual BlackStar Film Festival are now open! Follow the link in bio to submit your work today.⁠⠀
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Early deadline is February 10 and the final deadline for submissions is March 31! #BSFF21 will take place August 4-8 this year. ⁠⠀
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Visit the link to learn more!
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[Image Descriptions: First card reads "Submit Your Film Today" BlackStar Film Festival, #BSFF21, blackstarfest.org/submissions, in teal against black. Second card has the same footer with a headline that reads "Submissions Open Now" over the obscured date Jan 15, and all against a teal background. Third card is a quote, "BlackStar is the very definition of self-determined image crafting. The gathering, the content, the energy, the joy...rarefied and unrivaled." — Elissa Blount Moorhead."]
The first print in our year-long 10th Anniversary The first print in our year-long 10th Anniversary Print Sale is from @timemovie director @garrettgarrettbradleybradley — and it's now available at blackstarfest.org/anniversary! ⁠⠀
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Garrett Bradley⁠⠀
Untitled (Flower 3)⁠⠀
2020⁠⠀
Edition of 30⁠⠀
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Read more about Garrett (#BSFF19, #BSFF20) and the sale at the link in bio! ⁠⠀
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Purchases of this limited edition artwork support BlackStar as we celebrate our 10th anniversary. A new print from a BlackStar alum will be unveiled on the 15th of every month for the rest of the year. 🎉⁠⠀
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#BlackStar10⁠⠀
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[Image descriptions: First slide is a black and white image of a flowering plant growing on a rock face, titled "Untitled (Flower 3)" by Garrett Bradley. Second is a graphic for "BlackStar 10th Anniversary Print Sale" which features the organization logo and text in white, against a black background, and surrounding by shapes in pink and teal, including stars and confetti-like rectangles.]⁠⠀
This Friday, BlackStar is launching a special 10th This Friday, BlackStar is launching a special 10th Anniversary Print Sale — with a limited edition print for sale on the 15th of every month for the rest of the year! ⁠⠀
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Featuring artworks by BlackStar alums (in alphabetical order, by last name): Garrett Bradley, Damon Davis, Kevin Jerome Everson, Haile Gerima, Arthur Jafa, Kahlil Joseph, Louis Massiah, Terence Nance, Michelle Angela Ortiz, Fahamu Pecou, Andrea Pippins, and Cauleen Smith.⁠⠀
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Check back here or visit the link in bio on January 15 to find out which print goes on sale first.⁠⠀
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And join us all year as we celebrate a decade of BlackStar (including our 10th annual film festival in August!).⁠⠀
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#BlackStar10 #BSFF21⁠⠀
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[Video Description: The text above, advertising the BlackStar 10th Anniversary Print Sale, is visually represented as a GIF, with headlines and the names of the participating artists appearing within or surrounded by circle and star shapes, and using the colors teal, pink, white, and dark grey.]
BlackStar turns 10 this year and we're doing *a lo BlackStar turns 10 this year and we're doing *a lot* to celebrate! This includes the tenth edition of the Film Festival this August — for which submissions will open this coming Friday — another issue (or two) of @seen_journal, our podcast @manylumens, a 10th anniversary print sale, the return of #BlackStarLIVE plus much much more! 🎉⁠⠀
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Follow the link in bio to read about all the programs and initiatives we have planned for 2021, or learn more at blackstarfest.org. ⁠⠀

#BlackStar10 #BSFF21 #byindiemeansnecessary 
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[Image Descriptions: second slide is a screenshot of an article from @phillyvoice with the title "BlackStar Projects expanding on film festival to celebrate 10 years," by Sinead Cummings. Article features a photo of an empty movie theatre. First slide is another screenshot, of an article from @indiewire, with the title "Don't Call It a Comeback: 2021 Film Festivals Remain Vital in Whatever Form They Take," by Eric Kohn. Article features a photo from the Cannes Film Festival.]
ICYMI, we released the first episode of @manylumen ICYMI, we released the first episode of @manylumens this week! Host @maorikarmael is joined by writer and filmmaker dream hampton for a conversation that explores the intimate dimensions, costs and rewards of being committed to a Black radical politics. Topics include dream's early hip hop influences, Detroit, writing and making films, the necessary practice of tuning out the trolls and finding refuge amidst the chaos.⁠⠀
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Listen at the link in bio and subscribe to get the next podcast episode (with Janicza Bravo!) as soon as it drops on Monday!⁠⠀
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#dreamhampton
#ManyLumens💡⁠⠀
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[Image Descriptions: First slide is a quote video and visualizer featuring the following text from dream hampton, accompanied by audio: "You know, what I heard and believe about Aquarius? Is that Aquarians are concerned about 'the people,' but not people [laughs], which is like so scary. Because sometimes when I think of that Che Guevara quote you know, 'to serve the people you have to love the people,' and I'm like I'm not sure I love y'all...you guys get on my nerves." Second slide features a headshot of dream hampton surrounded by the Many Lumens logo and the text "Episode 1."].
"Costume designer Ruth Carter has brought memorabl "Costume designer Ruth Carter has brought memorably bold and colorful looks to the screen for decades. Carter earned her first credit on Spike Lee’s School Daze in 1988 and has gone on to have a long working relationship with the director. In 2019, she made history as the first Black designer to win an Academy Award for Best Costume Design, for her work on Black Panther. From indie films to Marvel blockbusters, Carter’s work is now the subject of a well-deserved exhibit, Ruth E. Carter: Afrofuturism in Costume Design,  now on view at the Savannah College of Art and Design’s SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film through September 21, 2021." - Abbey Bender, for @hyperallergic⁠
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Link in bio for the full article and more info about the exhibit!⁠
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[Image Description: Screenshot from Hyperallergic site shows the title "Ruth Carter’s Radical, Afrofuturist Fashion" above the subtitle: "From "Do the Right Thing" to "Selma" to "Black Panther", Carter’s costume designs have long been defined by their ability to elevate characters too often marginalized." Below that is a photo of a hand (presumably Carter's) touching the Black Panther costume, wearing jewelry that spells out "Love." Photo credit via Hyperallergic: Awol Erizku for The New Yorker (courtesy SCAD FASH Museum of Fashion + Film)].
Are you ready for @manylumens!? Today we released Are you ready for @manylumens!? Today we released another teaser for the first season of the podcast, featuring a short conversation between @maorikarmael and @dyanawilliams!

Here’s a quote from Maori, from the teaser, explaining more: “My collaborators thought it made sense to offer a little insight into why we're doing this podcast. And I invited Dyana Williams, legendary journalist, television and radio personality, entrepreneur, mother, cultural producer, art collector, fashionista, and all around amazing human being. Plus she's a mentor in my head, although I've never formally asked her to be one. Dyana has been one of my favorite people to talk to over the years and she's been a part of the BlackStar legacy from day one. Thankfully for us, she said, yes, here's a little bit of our conversation recorded in December from both of our respective homes in Philadelphia."
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Listen and subscribe at the link in bio! Season 1 starts next Monday, January 4.⁠⠀

Happy holidays! 💫
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[Image Description: First slide is a graphic with the Many Lumens logo and the text Host, Maori Karmael Holmes (written in colorful fonts), surrounding a photo of Maori, against black. Visualizer graphic features the Many Lumens logo plus text that appears along with the audio: "The unique thing that I hope that we're bringing to the space is that we are talking to people who are exceptional artists and thinkers, but who are also really trying to, I think sort of spread light in some way, either through social justice or joy or resistance and many acts. And so, yeah, it's sort of feeling like it just felt like the perfect thing to call it." in white, against a bright blue background and above the name, Maori Karmael Holmes.]⁠⠀
Introducing our brand new podcast: @manylumens wit Introducing our brand new podcast: @manylumens with Maori Karmael Holmes! Join host @maorikarmael as she chats with the most groundbreaking artists, change makers, and cultural workers in the game — finding meaning in the intersections of art, social change, and popular culture.⁠⠀
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Head over to the @manylumens account now to listen to the trailer for Season 1 or subscribe at the link in bio to get the episodes as they drop.⁠⠀
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This season features interviews with dream hampton, @janicza, @jasonreynolds83, @anamibia, and @blitzambassador — we can't wait for you to hear them all!⁠⠀
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[Image Descriptions: First slide is a logo for Many Lumens w/ Maori Karmael Holmes, plus the BlackStar logo. Second slide is a GIF featuring the Many Lumens logo and Season 1 at the top, beneath that are the names “Dream hampton, Janicza Bravo, Jason Reynolds, Arthur Jafa, Blitz Bazawule.” Below that is the show description, which is written above.]

#manylumens
Two more articles from the first issue of @seen_jo Two more articles from the first issue of @seen_journal are now available to read online! Check out @maorikarmael's fascinating conversation with ZOLA costume designer @dericacolewash (including additional audio clips from their chat), and @darolkae's review of @_brother_sky's stunning 'maɬni—towards the ocean, towards the shore,' at the link in bio.⁠⠀
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New orders for the print and digital version of #SeenJournal will be fulfilled when we're back from break, after Jan 4. Orders placed before December 17 are on their way, though we continue to experience (like many) very long delays via USPS. Thank you for all of your support!⁠⠀
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[Image descriptions: First slide is a quote card that reads "The thing is really connecting with filmmakers since I am in this supportive role of making someone's vision come to life. It's important to be at the places where their work is being shown. It's important to support the work." - Derica Cole Washington, placed over a headshot of Derica looking at the camera. Second slide is a quote card with the text "Mastery is a colonial pursuit, and opacity is the right of Sweetwater, Jordan, and the Indigenous community that they belong to." - Darol Olu Kae, placed over a still from maɬni which shows the ocean.]⁠⠀

2020 Festival Re-cap

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