Oscar’s blackout of African Films!

A must read. At least that the thought that crossed my mind when I read the article on the NY Times web Hollywood’s Whiteout 

But the truth is far from it. A few days ago, I wrote about Black Debt, based on a feature by CNN. But what I did not mention in the article, is the successes of indebtedness of Black Celebrities. Perhaps because the scale weighs very lightly on those who have fallen in the darkness of debts. But the success enjoyed in the Film industry both in the Diaspora and in Africa, is far more staggering than it appears in the lime light.

Thus, the NYT article seems be on the spot, at least as far as US whiteout is concerned. Is this racially driven? I doubt it. But an evaluation of the status quo. Let me take you back 2010 in Black films, or perhaps the nostalgia of Tyler Perry’s films which touch Black people in the US.

My recent favourite, “For Coloured Girls”, (check the Wiki)and I have tweeted and wrote about it on my FaceBook  page. Whys is this film not at the Oscar’s or better yet, why has it not appeared on the Awards circuit around the world. The simplest answers (and a pain staking one) is … the release date was beyond the required release  date for the nomination.

But….this is not true. Rule 03 of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences says different. So simply, this film should have been in. Unless I missed something.

Technorati Tags: Oscars Academy Award Rules

But nothing I missed on the list, as the NYT article continues, the question in my mind increases and gains and upsetting momentum. Is it racial? Is it Talent? Is it the flavour of the year?

I am disturbed by this. In over a decade, I came across a film that inspires a movement. A film that dissects the ills of society in its deepest form. This film, I found, to conjoin its predecessors to form a collage of films that raises questions about how we, as Africans, can allow ills to continue to ravage our fibres through and through.

If you are wondering what I am blubbing about, here is a quick short list. Tell me if it draws on the same fibres as I see it.

Also look at http://mghardie.wordpress.com/2010/02/15/30-greatest-black-movies-part-1/

• American Gangster – about a black man who becomes a drug lord. –[Denzel Washington]

• Jason Lyric – about a young woman who needs a reason to leave the ghetto. [Jada Pinkett Smith;Bokeem Woodbine;Forest Whitaker]

• Precious – about a young teenager abused. [Gabourey Sidibe; Mo'Nique]

While the above is a reflection on the most recent films, I think you get the idea. What is available for The Academy of Motion Pictures as a selection on black films? As much as they venture across the 4 Oceans all the way to Australia, across the Atlantic etc. to find films suitable to be called OSCAR Nominees. They can venture to other places,  not to fill a quota but to get the broad audience they so miss in their eggshells.