“It’s great that Mr. Armstrong is finally getting his just due,” reveals director Sacha Jenkins when asked about the overwhelmingly positive response to his documentary “Louis Armstrong’s Black and Blues.” The Apple TV+ film holds a perfect 100 rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and has been nominated for Best Music Documentary at both the Critics Choice and IDA Documentary Awards.
Jenkins’ film follows the life and legacy of Louis Armstrong, the founding father of jazz, America’s first pop star, and cultural ambassador. To celebrate the acclaimed movie, watch our special Spotlight roundtable discussion with Jenkins and four key players from “Louis Armstrong’s Black and Blues” — animator Hectah Arias, archival producer Amilca Palmer and editors Alma Herrera-Pazmino and Jason Pollard. Together they are joined by Gold Derby senior editor Denton Davidson for a fun, memorable Q&a. Watch our exclusive video interview above.
See dozens of interviews...
Jenkins’ film follows the life and legacy of Louis Armstrong, the founding father of jazz, America’s first pop star, and cultural ambassador. To celebrate the acclaimed movie, watch our special Spotlight roundtable discussion with Jenkins and four key players from “Louis Armstrong’s Black and Blues” — animator Hectah Arias, archival producer Amilca Palmer and editors Alma Herrera-Pazmino and Jason Pollard. Together they are joined by Gold Derby senior editor Denton Davidson for a fun, memorable Q&a. Watch our exclusive video interview above.
See dozens of interviews...
- 11/21/2022
- by Denton Davidson
- Gold Derby
A&e Network has signed on for a feature documentary about Ol’ Dirty Bastard, the late founding member of pioneering hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan.
The film, under the working title Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard, will be co-directed by Sam Pollard and Pollard’s son, editor Jason Pollard. A&e promises a “definitive” look at the performer born Russell Jones, produced with the cooperation of Odb’s estate and featuring “a never-before-seen personal archive shot by his wife, Icelene Jones, and access to his closest friends and family.”
“This culture-defining special,” A&e says, “humanizes Odb as a man, a father, and a husband like never before… providing an intimate picture of Odb’s life and reflecting on his lasting impact on music and culture.”
The film is being produced by Pulse Films, with...
The film, under the working title Biography: Ol’ Dirty Bastard, will be co-directed by Sam Pollard and Pollard’s son, editor Jason Pollard. A&e promises a “definitive” look at the performer born Russell Jones, produced with the cooperation of Odb’s estate and featuring “a never-before-seen personal archive shot by his wife, Icelene Jones, and access to his closest friends and family.”
“This culture-defining special,” A&e says, “humanizes Odb as a man, a father, and a husband like never before… providing an intimate picture of Odb’s life and reflecting on his lasting impact on music and culture.”
The film is being produced by Pulse Films, with...
- 4/1/2022
- by Matthew Carey
- Deadline Film + TV
Showtime has released a trailer for “Bitchin’: the Sound and Fury of Rick James,” a new documentary directed by Emmy-nominee and hip-hop journalist Sacha Jenkins (“Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics and Men”). Judging by the trailer the doc aims to present an accurate look at one of the most controversial and confrontational figures in the history of R&b and popular music.
James, who died in 2004, is known for his 1980s hits like “Super Freak” and “Give It to Me”; his prison term for a sexual misconduct; and of course Dave Chappelle’s famous parody. Yet as documented in the trailer, his confrontational nature — he was very upfront about his sexual and drug habits, among many other things — have clouded the perspective on his music and his importance, particularly in advancing Black music into the video age. His videos for “Super Freak” and other hits were, along with Michael Jackson’s,...
James, who died in 2004, is known for his 1980s hits like “Super Freak” and “Give It to Me”; his prison term for a sexual misconduct; and of course Dave Chappelle’s famous parody. Yet as documented in the trailer, his confrontational nature — he was very upfront about his sexual and drug habits, among many other things — have clouded the perspective on his music and his importance, particularly in advancing Black music into the video age. His videos for “Super Freak” and other hits were, along with Michael Jackson’s,...
- 8/3/2021
- by Jem Aswad
- Variety Film + TV
Here’s your first look at the trailer for the comedy/drama An American in Hollywood, which (hopefully) tells a story about what it’s really like in Hollyweird.The film was directed by recent New York University/Tisch graduate Sai Varadan, produced and edited by Jason Pollard, and stars Richard Carroll Jr along with Jd Williams and Hassan Johnson from HBO’s The Wire. The film tells the story about “a talented young filmmaker from New York who sets off to Los Angeles in pursuit of the Hollywood dream, only to discover through his relationship with a beautiful feisty young actress, that Hollywood is not all that it seems.”Hey, who doesn’t know that?The film will have its...
- 9/5/2013
- by Sergio
- ShadowAndAct
Voting for our Grand Finale ended on December 21. The winning film is “A Day In The Life” by Matthew “Sah” Jenifer. We introduced Sah when we announced him as the winner of Round 5 back in November. (Click here to read up on him and the film). Sah takes home a cash prize of $4,000. The winner of the season's popular vote is Raafi Rivero's "Their Eyes Were Watching Gummy Bears" which was written by Christopher Roy Poindexter and produced by Poindexter and Jason Pollard. This award is for the film that accumulated the most votes during the season among those films that did not win a qualifying round. Overall, we've distributed $10,000 in...
- 1/25/2013
- by Rodney C. Parnther
- ShadowAndAct
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