‘Negroes With Guns’ hits the big time
The documentary by two UF filmmakers will be screened Monday at the Los Angeles Film Festival.
By JANINE YOUNG SIKES
Gainesville Sun Staff Writer
They
made it to L.A. The big time. Showbiz capital of the world.
University of Florida documentary filmmakers Sandra Dickson and Churchill Roberts
celebrate today as the Los Angeles Film Festival kicks off its annual event.
On Monday, their film, "Negroes With Guns: Rob Williams and Black Power," makes
its world premiere on the big screen.
The film is one of 11 in the documentary category and the only one in the entire
weeklong festival associated with a higher-learning institution, film festival
officials said Wednesday. The festival showcases nearly 200 features, shorts,
videos and documentaries.
While there are some first-time writers and directors in the competition, a festival
organizer said, most are professional filmmakers.
"The majority of works accepted into the festival are not done in tandem with
an educational institution," said Lisa Garibay, the festival's publicity coordinator.
And for Dickson and Roberts, the L.A. Film Festival marks a first for a film
from UF's Documentary Film Institute.
"In the past we have always sent our films directly to PBS (Public Broadcasting
Service)," Roberts said. "PBS more often than not said, 'Yes, we would like to
run this in the national schedule.' This time we thought it might be a good idea
to put this film out to festivals before we sent it to PBS."
The festival is considered one of the premiere festivals in the country. The
films considered for screening were selected from among more than 2,800 submissions
from filmmakers around the world.
UF's entry, "Negroes With Guns," is the title of the 1962 book by Rob Williams,
who first challenged blacks to take up arms in self-defense in the late 1950s
and later challenged the nonviolent leadership of the mainstream civil rights
movement.
Most of the narration is done in Williams' voice, from dozens of hours of taped
speeches and radio broadcasts.
The documentary will screen twice - Monday and Friday - during the festival,
which continues through June 26. It will compete for a $25,000 unrestricted grant.
Dickson will be heading out for the West Coast on Saturday to represent UF during
a bevy of interviews, promo events and possibly to sell the film to a distributor.
Other documentaries in the competition:
- "Imelda" looks at former Philippines first lady Imelda Marcos.
- "Monumental: David Brower's Fight for Wild America" follows environmentalist David Brower from the redwood forests to the Grand Canyon.
- "Crazy Legs Conti: Zen and the Art of Competitive Eating" sits at the table with Crazy Legs Conti during his rookie year as a competitive eater.
For more information on the festival and to view clips of some of the films, go to www.lafilmfest.com.
Related Links:
"'Negroes
With Guns' hits the big time" on
Gainesvillesun.com
Negroes With Guns
Web site
The above article was published June 17, 2004 in The Gainesville Sun and is © 2004 Gainesvillesun.com. It is reproduced with permission.
The Campaign for the University of Florida