CFWC Black History - Kamau Tribute

Co-founded by the late filmmaker Kamau Tyehimba, Reel Black Filmmakers’ foundation is to build a community of filmmakers of African descent, who adhere to some of the basic tenets of the role and relevancy of Black artists and Black arts in the lives of Black people.

“Kamau passed away last year, and we miss having him here to celebrate with us,” shares Margaret Caples, executive director of the Community Film Workshop of Chicago. Caples continues, “The continuation of his cultural legacy is solid with these three outstanding filmmakers.”

Following his passing, Tyehimba’s family and friends established the Kamau Tyehimba Filmmaker Scholarship. The scholarship was created because Tyehimba believed that Black filmmakers should represent “people from whom they come and who they represent in their varied forms of creative expressions.” Shahari Moore, Reginald Rice and David Weathersby are the inaugural scholarship recipients.

For the past few years, Reel Black Filmmakers’ founding member and filmmaker, Derek Grace, has been at helm of the organization. Rice was recently appointed Reel Black Filmmakers’ program coordinator and is eager to catapult the esteemed organization’s presence and its importance for cultural preservation, Black identity and integrity in the film industry. “The greatest award for filmmaking is not exemplified by tropes, special invites and laurels. It is in the paradigm shift. That’s impact…that moment when the filmmaker’s final product cultivates the gaze of the audience and rekindles their desire, their appetite and their will to self-examine their own life’s journey. That’s the philosopher’s stone,” states Rice.

Caples adds that Reel Black Filmmakers, “is spearheaded by a group of committed artists who are advocates for inclusion, collaboration, exhibition, and mentoring.”

For more information on the Community Film Workshop of Chicago and Reel Black Filmmakers, go to www.cfwchicago.org. To schedule interviews with Margaret Caples and/or the filmmakers, contact Keisha Chavers, CFWC program coordinator, [email protected]; 773.218.1844 or Reel Black Filmmakers program coordinator Reginald Rice, [email protected]; 312.877.2049.

The Reel Black Filmmakers 13th Anniversary Screening is presented through the generous support from the Chicago Park District, Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, Reva & David Logan Center for the Arts, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events (DCASE), and the Illinois Arts Council.