National Geographic to Showcase Indigenous and Minority-Culture Film at All Roads Film Festival in D.C. & L.A.

A scene from Maori short "Kerosene Creek," which will be featured at the All Roads Film Festival. Image courtesy of the National Geographic Society.

The work of indigenous and other “under-represented minority-culture filmmakers and photographers from around the world will be heralded at the upcoming All Roads Film Festival, taking place in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles beginning in September. The four-day multimedia event will feature four evening programs accompanied by a live musical performance by Latin/reggae and techno group Sidestepper. Additionally, the events will include panel discussions with select filmmakers, photographers and artists, and there will be a photography exhibit and other displays from various countries around the world.

Both short and feature documentaries, animation and music videos from around the globe are slated as well as a special program entitled, “Women Hold Up Half the Sky”, a focus on women filmmakers. Among the titles set to screen in the festival are the world premiere of Emma Kaye and Eric Oldrin‘s South African feature “Beyond Freedom,” as well as the U.S. debut of the Maori doc “Passion and Conflict,” and Maori short “Kerosene Creek.” Also scheduled are the L.A. and Washington, D.C. premieres of “Planet of the Arabs,” “Arabs A-Go-Go,” “Teaching of the Tree People,” “The Hunter,” “Green Bush,” and “Plains Empty.”

The All Roads Film Festival is part of the All Roads Film Project, a National Geographic initiative to provide a global platform for “indigenous and minority-culture storytellers.” In addition to providing a platform to present their films, the program gives filmmakers and photographers a series of networking opportunities with established people working in both fields. The All Roads Film Project rewards up to ten seed grants per year to support the development and production of film and video projects.

“Indigenous and under-represented filmmakers can have difficulty breaking into mainstream media, but often they have the most interesting stories to tell,” said Mark Bauman, director of the All Roads Film Festival in a statement. “Our goal is to provide these filmmakers the link that connects them with members of the film industry and makes their films more accessible to the viewing public.”

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The event in Los Angeles will take place in conjunction with the American Cinematheque September 22 - 25 at the Egyptian Theatre, and in Washington, D.C. September 29 - October 2 at the National Geographic Society. [For more information, please visit the festival website.] posted on August 15, 2005 |Share