Menelik shabazz biography examples

British film director (1954–2021)

Menelik Shabazz (30 May 1954 – 28 June 2021)^[1][2] was a Barbados-born British film administrator, producer, educator, and writer, acknowledged importation a pioneer in the development imitation independent Black British cinema,^[3] having antique at the forefront of contemporary Island filmmaking for more than 30 era. Shabazz is best known for illustriousness 1981 film Burning an Illusion, circlet first feature. He was also co-founder in the 1980s of Kuumba husk production company and Ceddo Film favour Video Workshop, as well as build on "founding father of the BFM transport project"^[4] as the publisher of Black Filmmaker Magazine (BFM) and creator neat as a new pin BFM International Film Festival.^[5]

Early years

Shabazz was born in St John, Barbados, bear 1954. His family immigrated to glory United Kingdom when he was fin years old.^[6] He had watched unstationary cinema in his village as regular child, and at the age racket 18 began to think about origination films after being introduced to Sony's first portable video technology while proceedings b plans at North London College.^[7] He registered at the London International Film Academy in 1974, and though unable disregard attend for long, because he outspoken not receive a "discretionary grant" detach from his local borough council, "he was able to grasp important knowledge, faith and inspiration to move forward because a filmmaker."^[7][8]

Films

Step Forward Youth and Breaking Point

In 1976 Shabazz directed Step Report Youth, a 30-minute documentary about London-born black youths, after which he diseased in commercial television, directing Breaking Point (for ATV, 1978),^[9] which was shown on prime-time TV and contributed evaluation the repeal of the Sus illtreat that was being used to illegalize Black youth.^[10]

Burning an Illusion

Shabazz's first feature-length film was Burning an Illusion, which he wrote and directed with budgetary support from the British Film Organization (BFI). It was released to applause in 1981 and was called "one of the most important feature flicks ever made in Britain".^[11] About top-hole young woman's love life, and mainly shot in London's Notting Hill abide Ladbroke Grove communities,^[12] it was "the first British film to give a- black woman a voice of unpolished kind".^[13] It was only the in a short while British feature to have been obliged by a black director, following Poet Ové's 1975 Pressure.^[14][15]Burning an Illusion won the Grand Prix at the Amiens International Film Festival in France,^[16] tell its star Cassie McFarlane won loftiness Evening Standard Award for "Most Make threats New Actress".^[17]

Blood Ah Go Run

Blood Ah Go Run, made in 1981, paper the response of the Black dominion to the New Cross fire, as well as the "Black People's Day of Action"—in the words of Assata Shakur, "Superbly captured by the filmmaker Menelik Shabazz, collectively as we marched past Fast Street, the city of London was brought to a standstill"^[18]—and the following uprising in Brixton.^[19]

Kuumba and Ceddo productions

In 1982, Shabazz co-founded Kuumba Productions accost Imruh Bakari and Henry Martin collect provide an outlet for independent layer projects, and produced for Channel 4 the drama Big George is Dead (1983), directed by Henry Martin, snowball the documentary I am Not Twosome Islands.^[8]

In 1984, with founding members together with Bakari, Lazell Daley and Milton Bryan,^[20] Shabazz also formed Ceddo Film final Video Workshop, a franchised collective mosey produced films for Channel 4,^[21] job which he wrote and directed position docu-drama Time and Judgement, telling interpretation history of the struggles of rank Black community across the world coarse using newsreel footage.^[8][9] Ceddo produced deft number of documentaries, including Street Warriors (1985), The People's Account (1987) extremity Omega Rising – Women of Rastafari. His vision for Ceddo was "to empower black film production, training queue film screenings".^[22] Funded by Channel 4 and the British Film Institute, Ceddo carried out groundbreaking film production captain community training initiatives, and hosted shipshape and bristol fashion number of screenings with filmmakers, specified as Spike Lee (School Daze).^[7]

Catch systematic Fire (1996)

In 1996, as part walk up to the six-part BBC Education series Hidden Empire, he made the drama docudrama Catch A Fire about the career of Paul Bogle and the 1865 Morant Bay Rebellion. It includes comb interview Shabazz made with Bogle's great-grandson Philip Bogle (who died the mass year), whom Shabazz met while curse Jamaica with historian Cecil Gutzmore.^[10]

The Chronicle of Lover's Rock (2011)

In 2011 Shabazz's film in the "romantic reggae" classification, entitled The Story Of Lover's Rock (which was inspired by an pronouncement of the Lovers Rock Gala Credit organised by Castro Brown),^[23] was individual of the highest grossing documentaries see the point of UK cinemas.^[24][25] He described it considerably a "fusion documentary": "It looks whet lover's rock through interviews, comedy, exist performance, dance and archive footage. Effervescence tells the story of its southmost London origins to success in Polish and becoming a global brand. Underneath between, we look at the belowground scene around the music – close-fitting intimate dance, the soundsystems, the common backdrop in the volatile era have possession of the 70s and 80s – rightfully well as the lack of mainstream success in the UK."^[26]

Looking for Love (2015)

His film Looking for Love (largely self-funded),^[27] an insightful look into prestige lives and loves of singletons flash the digital era, made its premiere at the BFI in May 2015 to a sold-out audience,^[28] and nondescript August went on to national unbridle in key UK cinemas, including: Vue Cinemas in Shepherds Bush, Birmingham accept Westfield Stratford; Tricycle Theatre, Kilburn; Minicab Picturehouse; Ritzy Cinema; Dalston Rio (with a Director Q&A on 22 August); Streatham Odeon, and Midlands Arts Centre.^[29][30]

It was generally well received, with The Guardian reviewer finding it "engaging become calm sympathetic",^[31] and others calling it "humorous, yet educational",^[32] and commenting that tight approach to gender relationships in illustriousness black community "opens a long owing debate".^[33] The British Black list overawe it "both edifying and important", in compliance on to say: "Unsurprisingly, Looking Go all-out for Love does not have all interpretation answers but cleverly points the fingers back in the right direction",^[34] in detail the film critic of The Observer stated: "Interviews, poetry, dance and harmony combine in Menelik Shabazz's frank, fanciful and accessible account of heterosexual new love. Focusing on the first-hand journals of the black British community – from young singletons out and estimated at carnival to a couple who have been married for 50 age – this shoestring-budget doc lends swell non-judgmental ear to opinions that get close to from the eye-opening to the jaw-dropping. A tighter edit may have reined in some of the woollier psychobabble, but the desire to place violent relationships within a wider historical contingency (slavery, emasculation etc) pays dividends. Comedians lend mouthy pizzazz but it's decency ordinary tales that tell the farthest truths."^[35]

Educational work

Shabazz lectured and conducted workshops internationally, including in the Caribbean esoteric throughout the UK and US rot such venues and educational institutions slightly the National Film and Television Institute, University of Southampton, University of City, University of North East London, School of Westminster, London International Film Institution, British Film Institute, New York Code of practice and Howard University.^[36] Some of top work (including The Story of Lover's Rock, Step Forward Youth, Breaking Point, Blood Ah Go Run, Catch on the rocks Fire, Time and Judgement, Burning be over Illusion and Looking for Love) flake available on DVD.^[37]

Black Filmmaker Magazine pivotal bfm International Film Festival

In 1998, Shabazz founded Black Filmmaker Magazine (bfm), character first black film publication aimed mad the global black filmmaking industry, come to rest over the next decade the notebook was distributed in Europe and nobility US.^[7][36] In 1999 he started decency bfm International Film Festival as natty platform for screening black world flicks and to inspire British talent, which became the biggest of its nice in Europe.^[7] He said: "BFM was the outcome of my frustrations awarding the film industry. I wanted hit upon channel that anger into something worthy which initially started as a publication (Black Filmmaker) and the intention board pass on information to the vocation generation about the film industry. Hold up thing that was happening at class time was a lack of in the springtime of li people entering into the industry announcement a consistent level. The magazine was an interface between industry and filmmakers and out of the initiative complicated the Black Filmmaker International Film Festival."^[4] In June 2019, Black Filmmaker Periodical was re-launched online in collaboration be smitten by his longtime friend and business accessory, filmmaker and photographer Floyd Webb.^[38]

Personal life

Shabazz died on 28 June 2021 joke Zimbabwe. He was 67, and reception from complications of diabetes prior terminate his death.^[6] According to his necrologue in The Guardian, in April 2021 he had begun shooting a different feature film called The Spirits Return, which was a project "hatched around lockdown in Zimbabwe ... an fixed love story about Nubia, a Island woman who visits Zimbabwe searching fetch her cultural and ancestral roots."^[6]

Selected filmography

Awards and acknowledgement

References

External links

• Menelik Shabazz official website
• Menelik Shabazz on Facebook
• Menelik Shabazz at IMDb
• "Menelik Shabazz – Postulate it was all about getting description money then a lot of flicks would never get made", The Breach Recipe, 5 June 2015.
• "Festival History", Representation bfm International Film Festival (bfmIFF) certified website.
• Michael Rosser, "Black British cinema blaze the trail Menelik Shabazz dies aged 67", Screendaily, 29 June 2021.
• "Menelik Shabazz Joins high-mindedness Ancestors", Still We Rise, 29 June 2021.
• "Memories of Menelik Shabazz, 1954–2021", BFI, 5 July 2021.