“The Book of Clarence” Director Jeymes Samuel Brings Humanity to the Biblical Epic

Hollywood has long recognized the cinematic appeal of Bible stories as both ancient and eternal. Battles between good and evil play out on an epic scale, but The Book of Clarence looks beyond the page to spotlight everyday citizens whose lives were upended by Jesus’ journey. The film’s writer and director, Jeymes Samuel, aimed to widen the lens of the gospels and give some perspective to those just outside Christ’s circle. 

“The Color Purple” Composer Kris Bowers on Creating a Melodic Symphony Fit for Celie’s Journey

Composer Kris Bowers didn’t have to read the script before saying yes to Blitz Bazawule’s emotionally captivating version of The Color Purple. He was already a fan of his work, particularly the director’s debut, The Burial of Kojo, and Beyoncé’s visual album Black is King.

For this collaboration, early discussions focused on “being innovative musically” and connecting themes to one of the two dozen plus songs featured in the heartfelt musical that sees actor Fantasia Barrino playing the role of Celie,

“The Color Purple” Makeup Department Head Carol Rasheed Finds Music in Many Shades

Like its heroine, Celie (Fantasia Barrino), The Color Purple is a story that continually grows in boldness and beauty over time. Director Blitz Bazawule’s musical version of Alice Walker’s classic tale of hope and sisterhood is a vivid interpretation for a new generation.

Makeup department head Carol Rasheed approached the film with a clear intention and steadfast goals. She exchanged vision boards, music, and more with Bazawule for nearly six months to prepare for the shoot.

Best of 2023: Gina Prince-Bythewood, MPA Creator Award Recipient, Tells Her Story

*It’s our annual “Best of the Year” look back at some of our favorite interviews from the year. 

An elite force of female soldiers, the Agojie, is all that stands between the African Kingdom of Dahomey and the combined forces of the Oyo Empire and Mahi people. The Oyo and Mahi plan to raid Dahomey villages and sell their captives to European slavers. We open on a Mahi village where raiders heat their machetes over a fire at night.

Best of 2023: “Rustin” Screenwriter Julian Breece on Giving a Legend his Due

*It’s our annual “Best of the Year” look back at some of our favorite interviews from the year. 

There are countless unsung heroes of the civil rights movement who will never get the recognition they deserve, yet it’s hard to imagine an overlooked figure more central to the cause and more courageous and capacious in spirit than Bayard Rustin. While historians are well aware of the impact Rustin had on the civil rights movement writ large and specifically the March on Washington,

Best of 2023: “The Color Purple” Costume Designer Francine Jamison-Tanchuck’s Stunning Creations

*It’s our annual “Best of the Year” look back at some of our favorite interviews from the year. This interview works doubly well as “The Color Purple” is in theaters today. Merry Christmas!

There’s a famous line in Alice Walker’s 1982 novel The Color Purple that goes: “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.” It’s a message that even God can become annoyed when people overlook the wonderful things he creates.

Gael García Bernal on His Showstopping Performance in “Cassandro”

Gael García Bernal has played a political revolutionary, an eccentric symphony conductor, an animated trickster, and a victim of a beach that makes you age years in hours, but he’s never made as much noise in one film as he does in Cassandro, where Bernal had to rile up crowds of thousands as the eponymous lucha libre star. Cassandro, a Texas native known outside the ring as Saúl Armendáriz, became an unlikely wrestling champion in Mexico by flaunting his flamboyance.

“The Chi” Producer/Directors Deondray Gossfield and Quincy LeNear Gossfield on Shaping Lena Waithe’s Sharp Showtime Series

The Chi directors/producers Deondray Gossfield and Quincy LeNear Gossfield are living proof of the collaborative spirit. They live and work together (they’re married), and when they directed episode 4 in season 5, “On Me,” in Lena Waithe’s coming-of-age Showtime series, the talented creator recognized she’d found two collaborators who could take on a larger role for season 6. That meant both directing and producing.

“We were already fans of the show before we started working on it,

“American Fiction” Writer/Director Cord Jefferson on Cutting to the Heart of the Matter

Writer/director Cord Jefferson’s narrative feature debut, American Fiction, has become one of the most talked about films this awards season, and for good reason. Adapted from Percival Everett’s 2001 novel “Erasure,” the satirical drama won the audience award upon its debut at the Toronto Film Festival, with a number of subsequent fests following suit, and was recently named one of the top ten films of 2023 by the AFI.

“The Color Purple” Costume Designer Francine Jamison-Tanchuck’s Stunning Creations

There’s a famous line in Alice Walker’s 1982 novel The Color Purple that goes: “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don’t notice it.” It’s a message that even God can become annoyed when people overlook the wonderful things he creates. One such creation is what the character of Celie represents. “She’s a beautiful flower and a beautiful person that’s being trampled on,” costume designer Francine Jamison-Tanchuck tells The Credits.

“American Fiction” Star Jeffrey Wright Authors a New Chapter in a Stellar Career

Jeffrey Wright has found a great role as Monk Ellison in writer/director Cord Jefferson’s American Fiction. The story is based on a 2001 novel called “Erasure” by Percival Everett and centers on a professor and writer fed up with the way the literary world limits how Blackness is portrayed in pop culture. In response, Monk writes a blatantly stereotypical novel full of gangs, thugs, and criminals using a pseudonym. To his shock,

“Rustin” Screenwriter Julian Breece on Giving a Legend his Due

There are countless unsung heroes of the civil rights movement who will never get the recognition they deserve, yet it’s hard to imagine an overlooked figure more central to the cause and more courageous and capacious in spirit than Bayard Rustin. While historians are well aware of the impact Rustin had on the civil rights movement writ large and specifically the March on Washington, most Americans are not.

George C. Wolfe‘s Rustin (in theaters now) offers a course correction.

“The Persian Version” Writer/Director Maryam Keshavarz on the Joys of Iranian American Culture

The Persian Version won both the Audience Award and the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award in the U.S Dramatic Competition at Sundance this year, and for good reason. The film is a feel-good dramedy that combines stories of traditional Iranian culture with those of the Iranian American experience with a decidedly modern touch. The story follows Leila (Layla Mohammadi), a queer Iranian American working to keep her parents and many brothers who love her at a distance while navigating her ever more complicated personal life.

How Osage Tradition Influenced the Hair & Makeup in “Killers of the Flower Moon”

There is perhaps nothing more important than authentically depicting the Osage in Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, a poignant tale based on real events where the oil-rich nation was devilishly deceived, manipulated, and murdered for their money and oil shares by the very ones who married them. Newspapers later described the tragedy, which lasted from 1921-1926, as the “Reign of Terror.”

Scorsese and co-writer Eric Roth brought David Grann’s best-selling novel of the same name to the screen with tremendous care and understanding.

Composer Kelly Mac Captures the Celestial Spirit of “Donyale Luna: Supermodel”

Donyale Luna was a whimsical invention. Born Peggy Ann Freeman in Detroit, she molded herself into a star. Luna conceived of and then captured remote dreams of glamour, fame, and adventure in the fashion industry. A tragically forgotten figure, the new documentary Donyale Luna: Supermodel – from director Nailah Jefferson – is a much-needed exploration into the making of an icon.

Composer Kelly Mac absorbs and reflects the complexity of Luna’s life through the film’s score.

“A Million Miles Away” Co-Writer/Director Alejandra Márquez Abella on Capturing a Dream Come True

Filmmaker Alejandra Márquez Abella learned of José Hernández 15 years ago when his inspirational story made headlines: Hernández, who toiled in the fields as a child alongside his family, is the first migrant farmworker to become a NASA astronaut and go into space — a lifelong dream he realized after nearly a decade of perseverance and pluck and with the unwavering support of his family and friends. When producers Mark Ciardi and Campbell McInnes approached Abella about bringing Hernández’s story to the screen,

“The Equalizer 3” Director Antoine Fuqua on Re-Teaming With Denzel Washington For Ferocious Finale

The Equalizer trilogy is a wrap. For the latest and supposedly final addition to the franchise, filmmaker Antoine Fuqua and his crew take Robert McCall (Denzel Washington, Fuqua’s longtime collaborator) to Southern Italy. Once again, this man of deep compassion but with an unparalleled gift for violence is tasked with protecting underdogs in a small seaside town on the Amalfi Coast under the bloody thumb of the mob.

It’s a lean,

Best of Summer 2023: “Brother” Writer/Director Clement Virgo on Returning to Filmmaking With His Quietly Devastating Adaptation

*It’s our annual “Best of Summer” look back at some (not all) of our favorite interviews from the past few months. This non-comprehensive look back includes the Barbenheimer phenomenon and the wonderful interviews that followed those two history-making films, chats with the talented folks behind Mission: Impossible, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, our profile of MPA Creator Award Recipient and filmmaker extraordinaire Gina Prince-Bythewood and more.

When he returned to feature filmmaking,

Best of Summer 2023: Gina Prince-Bythewood, MPA Creator Award Recipient, Tells Her Story

*It’s our annual “Best of Summer” look back at some (not all) of our favorite interviews from the past few months. This non-comprehensive look back includes the Barbenheimer phenomenon and the wonderful interviews that followed those two history-making films, chats with the talented folks behind Mission: Impossible, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, our profile of MPA Creator Award Recipient and filmmaker extraordinaire Gina Prince-Bythewood and more.

An elite force of female soldiers,

“Brother” Writer/Director Clement Virgo on Returning to Filmmaking With His Quietly Devastating Adaptation

Writer/director Clement Virgo followed his instincts when he returned to feature filmmaking. Since his last feature, Poor Boy’s Game (2007), Virgo has been directing TV, working more or less nonstop. He’s directed episodes of Empire, Netflix’s Dahmer- Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, and OWN’s megachurch drama Greenleaf. He was thinking about getting back into features when a friend handed him a copy of David Chariandy’s novel “Brother,”