From a Mario Van Peebles-directed entry about high schoolers coming of age during the first black presidency to the first commercial Hindi language film set and shot in Atlanta to a documentary on the life of Nelson Mandela, the second BronzeLens Film Festival is achieving its goal of diversity.
The mission of BronzeLens, a nonprofit organization founded in 2009, is to showcase Atlanta as “a center for film and production for people of color.”
While the festival, which launched Thursday, is a springboard for screenings, education is an equal priority and will be highlighted through a series of 17 panels and seminars, as well as three master classes.
Independent filmmaker Ava DuVernay, Los Angeles-based writing coach Pilar Alessandra and Atlanta-rooted multihyphenate Jasmine Guy will conduct their respective classes, which fest executive producer Kathleen Bertrand feels is a component that makes this film fest unique and helps the community “raise its game.”
“I literally caught Jasmine on the fly. We kept seeing each other [at various events] and I said, ‘You have such a story; I wish you’d share it.’ So she’s doing a class on transitioning. We think she has some great life lessons to share,” said Bertrand, who is also senior vice president of community and governmental affairs for the Atlanta Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Given the success of last year’s inaugural fest -- about 1,500 people attended, and 2,000 are expected this weekend -- the discussions moving forward weren’t about whether to bring the event back, but how to bolster its appeal.
More than 40 films will screen during the festival, 11 of them from Atlanta-based filmmakers, among them the human trafficking drama "Shanghai Hotel," produced, written and directed by Jerry Allen Davis and, to close the festival, "The Start of Dreams," a story about theater director Kenny Leon from brothers Bryon, Ryon and Tyson Horne.
The most popular nonscreening portions from the first outing, the movie location bus tour, which will visit the sites of movies filmed in Atlanta, and the Women Superstars Luncheon, will return this year.
“We figured if there is a producer or director [attending the festival] who wants to hop on the bus, they can see the potential of what filming opportunities are available in Atlanta,” Bertrand said.
A new aspect of the tour -- which is $20 for those without an all-access pass -- is a visit to the EUE/Screen Gems studio.
On Saturday, the Women Superstars Luncheon will honor original “Dreamgirls” Sheryl Lee Ralph and Jennifer Holliday;Eugenia Yuan, star of “Shanghai Hotel"; Africa Channel owner Paula Madison; “Footloose” actress Ziah Colon; and actress-writer-producer Guy.
To wrap the weekend, programming exploring social justice will be held Sunday at the Cosby Center at Spelman College, including the premiere screening of HBO Films’ “The Loving Story.”
Bertrand hopes that the inclusion of a heavy-hitter such as HBO indicates that BronzeLens is seeping into the film industry's consciousness.
“Being able to expand enough to get the attention of HBO is major for us,” she said, and later added, “The next Tyler Perry or Rob Hardy could be right here in this very community.”
Event preview
BronzeLens Film Festival
Nov. 11-13 (times vary). $150 (all access pass; does not include master classes and the Women Superstars Luncheon); $125 (Women Superstars Luncheon); $75 (individual master classes); $10-$40 (screening passes); $20 (college students with ID); $20 (movie location bus tour). Panels and seminars held through Nov. 12 at Atlanta Marriott Marquis, 265 Peachtree Center Ave., Atlanta, and Nov. 13 at Spelman College, Cosby Center, 350 Spelman Lane S.W., Atlanta. Screenings held at Georgia-Pacific Theater, Regal Atlantic Station, Woodruff Arts Center, American Cancer Society Theater and Cosby Center at Spelman College. 404-527-6941, www.bronzelensfilmfestival.com.
Other screening highlights
- "Sarabah" (from U.S./Senegal), 3:30 p.m. Friday at American Cancer Society Theater: Documentary about hip-hop artist Sister Fa and her efforts to stop the practice of female genital cutting in her homeland of Senegal.
- "96 Minutes" (from Atlanta), 1:05 p.m. Saturday at Georgia-Pacific Theater: Follows the stories of four kids whose lives collide in a shocking moment.
- "Kinyarwanda"(from Rwanda), 7 p.m. Saturday at Georgia-Pacific Theater: Based on true accounts from survivors who took refuge at the Grand Mosque of Kigali.
- "In the Footsteps of Ghandi" (from U.S.), 12:10 p.m. Sunday at Spelman College Cosby Center: On the 50th anniversary of his father's journey to India, Martin Luther King III travels back to the country with Andrew Young.
