Film Series

Aviva photo, Fall 2020 Digital Season: Film

With a long history of presenting film starting in the 1970s, we are returning this important art form to our season line-up to broaden our inclusive arts programming while also supporting independent film on campus and in West Philadelphia. As part of this initiative, Maori Karmael Holmes, Artistic Director and CEO of BlackStar Film Festival, has been appointed Curator-at-Large for Film. Holmes will work with Christopher Gruits, our Executive & Artistic Director, to develop a series of films that will complement and amplify our season programming across all disciplines. She will also develop ancillary activities such as lectures and discussions, creating opportunities for students to engage with filmmakers and others working in the film industry.

Fall 2020 Films

	*The Surrogate* October 2 @ 7 PM Learn More & Get Access
	*Aviva* November 13 @ 7 PM Learn More & Get Access
	*My Darling Vivian* November 20 @ 7 PM Learn More & Get Access
	*Two Beats One Soul* December 4 @ 7 PM Learn More & Get Access

Maori Karmael Holmes, Curator-at-Large for Film

Maori Karmael Holmes photo

Maori is a curator, filmmaker and writer. She founded BlackStar in 2012 and serves as its Artistic Director and CEO. She has organized programs in film at a myriad of organizations including Anthology Film Archives, Museum of Contemporary Art (Los Angeles), The Underground Museum, and the Whitney Museum of American Art. As a director, her works have screened internationally including her feature documentary Scene Not Heard: Women in Philadelphia Hip-Hop (2006). She has also directed and produced works for Colorlines.com, Visit Philadelphia, and singer-songwriter India.Arie. Her writing has recently appeared in The Believer, Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good, and How We Fight White Supremacy: A Field Guide to Black Resistance. Maori received her MFA in film & media arts from Temple University and her BA in history from American University. She currently serves on the board of American Documentary (POV), the advisory boards of Ulises, Vidiots, and Lightbox Film Center. Maori is a 2019 Soros Equality Fellow and serves as Mediamaker-in-Residence at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania, Curator-at-Large at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, and a Creative Executive with Blackbird.