African American Film: A Research Guide: Home
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Getting started
Welcome to the Stone Center Library's research guide to African American Film! Here you will find a variety of resources related to the study of African American cinema. Those resources include books, collections of reviews, and databases for finding articles.
Image credit: http://www.goedkope-online.nl/film/
History
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Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 B6 1994ISBN: 0826405789Publication Date: 1994Completely updated to include the entire twentieth century, this new fourth edition covers all the latest directors, stars, and films including Summer of Sam, Jackie Brown, The Best Man, and The Hurricane. From The Birth of a Nation and Gone with the Wind to the latest work by Spike Lee, John Singleton, Denzel Washington, Halle Berry and Will Smith, Donald Bogle reveals the ways in which the depiction of blacks in American movies has changed--and the shocking ways in which it has remained the same. -
Making Movies Black by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 C687 1993ISBN: 0195037731Publication Date: 1993This is the second volume of Thomas Cripps's definitive history of African-Americans in Hollywood. It covers the period from World War II through the civil rights movement of the 1960s, examining this period through the prism of popular culture. Making Movies Black shows how movies anticipated and helped form America's changing ideas about race. More than a narrative history, Making Movies Black reaches beyond the screen itself with sixty photographs, many never before published, which illustrate the mood of the time. Revealing the social impact of the classical Hollywood film, Making Movies Black is the perfect book for those interested in the changing racial climate in post-World War II American life. -
Slow Fade to Black: The Negro in American Film, 1900-1942 by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 C7 1993ISBN: 0195018648Publication Date: 1977Set against the backdrop of the black struggle in society, Slow Fade to Black is the definitive history of African-American accomplishment in film--both before and behind the camera--from the earliest movies through World War II. A lively, thorough history of African-Americans in the movies, Slow Fade to Black is also a perceptive social commentary on evolving racial attitudes in this country during the first four decades of the twentieth century. -
Framing Blackness by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 G84 1993ISBN: 9781439904138Publication Date: 1993From D.W. Griffith's The Birth of a Nation to Spike Lee's Malcolm X, Ed Guerrero argues, the commercial film industry reflects white domination of American society. Written with the energy and conviction generated by the new black film wave, Framing Blackness traces an ongoing epic--African Americans protesting screen images of blacks as criminals, servants, comics, athletes, and sidekicks. These images persist despite blacks' irrepressible demands for emancipated images and a role in the industry. Framing Blackness is the most up-to-date critical study of how African Americans are acquiring power once the province of Hollywood alone: the power of framing blackness. In the series Culture and the Moving Image, edited by Robert Sklar. -
Struggles for Representation: African American Documentary Film and Video by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 S77 1999ISBN: 0253335957Publication Date: 1999Struggles for Representation examines over 300 non-fiction films by more than 150 African American film/videomakers and includes an extensive filmography, bibliography, and excerpts from interviews with film/videomakers. In eleven original essays, contributors explore the extraordinary scope of these aesthetic and social documents and chart a previously undiscovered territory: documentaries that examine the aesthetic, economic, historical, political, and social forces that shape the lives of black Americans, as seen from their perspectives. -
From Sambo to Superspade: The Black Experience in Motion Pictures by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 L4ISBN: 0395194024Publication Date: 1975 -
Representing Blackness: Issues in Film and Video by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 R47 1997ISBN: 0813523133Publication Date: 1997The essays in this collection provide a variety of perspectives on black representation and questions of racial authenticity in mainstream as well as African American independent cinema. This volume includes seminal essays on racial stereotypes, trenchant critiques of that discourse, original essays on important directors such as Haile Gerima and Charles Burnett, and an insightful discussion of black gay and lesbian film and video. The contributors include Donald Bogle, Thomas Cripps, Jane Gaines, Nathan Grant, Stuart Hall, Tommy L. Lott, Wahneema Lubiano, Mike Murashige, Valerie Smith, James Snead, and David Van Leer. This volume is an important contribution to the Depth of Field series and should be indispensible for courses and individual scholars in film and multicultural studies. The book contains a mix of original and previously published pieces. -
African American Actresses by Call Number: Full text available via the UNC-Chapel Hill LibrariesISBN: 9780253004314Publication Date: 2010Nine actresses, from Madame Sul-Te-Wan in Birth of a Nation (1915) to Ethel Waters in Member of the Wedding (1952), are profiled in African American Actresses. Charlene Regester poses questions about prevailing racial politics, on-screen and off-screen identities, and black stardom and white stardom. She reveals how these women fought for their roles as well as what they compromised (or didn't compromise). Regester repositions these actresses to highlight their contributions to cinema in the first half of the 20th century, taking an informed theoretical, historical, and critical approach.
Film Reviews
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International Index to Film Periodicals. byCall Number: Z5784.M9 I49 1972Publication Date: 1972-2008Covers 60 to 80 titles selected to reflect international coverage of lasting aesthetic and critical value.
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Media Review Digest byCall Number: Z5784.M9 M85Publication Date: 1973-2006"The only Complete Guide to Reviews of Non-Print Media." Citations with descriptive notes to reviews of films, filmstrips, spoken word recordings, slides, media kits, and a variety of other media.
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Film Review Index: 1882-1985 byCall Number: Z5784.M9 F513 1986Publication Date: 1986A valuable index to reviews of films "of continuing importance. " Selective in attempting to provide references to substantive reviews from a wide variety of sources, both books and articles. Saves you the trouble of checking The Readers Guide to Periodical Literature and other sources for reviews of films released before 1980.
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Film Review Annual byCall Number: PN1995 .F465 1981Publication Date: 1982-2002Reprints reviews for full-length films released in U.S. markets. Reviews are drawn from a wide variety of newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals. A variety of indexes are provided. An excellent source.
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Sight and Sound Film Review Volume byCall Number: PN1993 .S562Publication Date: 1991-1994Intended as a companion to the periodical Sight and Sound, also published by the BFI. These are the only volumes to appear so far and there is a gap from May to December 1991.
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FilmfactsCall Number: PN1993 .F5Publication Date: 1958-1977International in scope. For each film gives personnel, synopsis, and copies of several reviews from major U.S. newspapers and sometimes magazines. Very handy for the years it covers, 1958, 1977.
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Variety Film Review byCall Number: PN1995 .V34Publication Date: 1983-1992Reprints reviews from Variety, the major trade publication for the film industry. Covers many obscure U.S. films and is particularly valuable for coverage of the international industry.
Sample Subject Headings
The hyperlinks listed below are subject headings found in the UNC-Chapel Hill Catalog. These headings can be used with other library catalogs such as WorldCat (OCLC), which includes the holdings of U.S. and international libraries.
African American motion picture actors and actresses
African American motion picture producers and directors
African Americans in motion pictures
African Americans in motion pictures -- Bibliography
African Americans in motion pictures -- Catalogs
African Americans in motion pictures -- Congresses
African Americans in motion pictures -- History
African Americans in motion pictures -- Periodicals
African Americans in motion pictures -- United States
African Americans in motion pictures -- United States -- History
African Americans in the motion picture industry
Blacks in motion pictures
Blacks in the motion picture industry
Race in motion pictures
Race relations in motion pictures
Racism in motion pictures
Bibliographies and Filmographies
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The Afro-American Cinematic Experience: An Annotated Bibliography & Filmography byCall Number: PN1995.9.N4 H9 1983ISBN: 0842022139Publication Date: 1983This book documents the changing nature of film content, the volatile character of race relations in the nation at large, and the general progression of Afro-American history and American thought.
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Blacks in American Movies: A Selected Bibliography by Call Number: Z5784.M9 P69ISBN: 081080753XPublication Date: 1974 -
Blacks in Black and White: A Sourcebook on Black Films by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 S2 1995ISBN: 0810826054Publication Date: 1995Since its publication in 1977 to acclaim as a pioneering work, this has remained the first and only book to detail all aspects of a unique era in the history of motion pictures--the only time in the U.S. when films featuring an all-Black cast, produced and directed by Blacks, were shown primarily to Black audiences, in theatres many of which were owned and managed by Blacks. Sampson traces the history of the Black film industry from its beginnings around 1910 to its demise in 1950, chronicling the activities of pioneer Black filmmakers and performers who have been virtually ignored by film historians. -
Blacks in Film and Television: a Pan-African Bibliography of Films, Filmmakers, and Performers byCall Number: Z5784.M9 G72 1990ISBN: 031327486XPublication Date: 1990This is a comprehensive guide to the black experience both on film and behind the camera. More than 6,000 entries documenting global film activity from 1919 to 1990 offer historical perspective on the black image in film, bibliographical material on filmmakers and individual artists, and exciting information on newly emerging talent throughout the world.
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Frame by Frame: A Black Filmography by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 K57ISBN: 0253164230Publication Date: 1979"For at least the past two decades, scholars have been looking at the role of blacks in a medium that has profoundly influenced attitudes toward race and society. Frame by Frame I provides a compendium of approximately 3,000 film items with black themes or subject matter (even before black actors appeared in them); films featuring substantial participation by blacks as writers, actors, producers, directors, musicians, and consultants; and films in which blacks play incidental roles. Productions by both U.S. and foreign companies made between 1900 and 1977 are included. Entries are categorized by type and fully annotated, including cast lists. The focus of Frame by Frame I is the presence and participation of blacks - an emphasis that illuminates their important contributions to the art of filmmaking."--BOOK JACKET -
Frame by Frame II: A Filmography of the African American Image, 1978-1994 by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 K58 1997ISBN: 025333280XPublication Date: 1997-06-01Frame by Frame II is a major reference guide on African American film professionals. It recognizes African Americans who have contributed their talents to a film industry that has scarcely recognized them. The editors acknowledge those independents who have rejected Hollywood values and set out on their own paths. This volume builds on the earlier Frame by Frame, which included productions through 1978. In order to assure that the 1978 entries are complete, that year is included in this edition. A compilation of information on more than 3,000 films, Frame by Frame II includes listings of films and of black casts, directors, executive producers, film composers, performers, producers, screenwriters, and Oscar-award winners and nominees. -
Frame by Frame III: A Filmography of the African Diasporan Image, 1994-2004 by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 F73 2007ISBN: 0253348293Publication Date: 2007An invaluable reference and resource for scholars and film devotees alike, Frame by Frame III documents the contributions of Africans and African Americans in all aspects of the cinematic arts. Spanning a decade, from 1994 to 2004, the volume includes narrative descriptions and plot summaries, listings of black cast members, directors, executive producers, film composers, performers, producers, screenwriters, and Academy Award winners and nominees. The introduction, "The Shifting Landscape of Black Cinema," provides a scholarly assessment of the changing landscape in black world cinema, its growth, impact, and challenges. -
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Reel Black Talk: A Sourcebook of 50 American Filmmakers by Call Number: PN1998.2 .M66 1997ISBN: 0313298300Publication Date: 1997As evidenced in interviews included in this volume, many African American filmmakers consider themselves artists first, their ethnicity being only part of what influences their work. Here directors and producers speak for themselves, posing challenges to current thinking in the field. Special emphasis is given to the filmmakers' productions and their experiences. Essays on historic figures reveal the rich history of the African American contribution to cinema. From Oscar Micheaux and Spencer Williams to Neema Barnett and the team of George Jackson and Doug McHenry, this revealing reference work will enlighten scholars, students, and film buffs. -
Women of Color: a Filmography of Minority and Third World Women by Call Number: Z5784.M9 O84 1985ISBN: 082409140XPublication Date: 1984First published in 1984. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company. -
African American Films Through 1959: A Comprehensive, Illustrated Filmography by Call Number: PN1995.9.N4 R54 1998ISBN: 0786403071Publication Date: 1998All films with a predominantly or entirely African American cast or that were about African Americans are detailed here. Each entry includes cast and credits, year of release, studio, distributor, type of film and other production details. In most cases, a brief synopsis of the film or contemporary reviews of it follow.
Databases
Indexes Specific to Film Reviews and Criticism:
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Film Index International1900-Present, updated annually. The Film Index International database provides in-depth indexing of over 100,000 films - from the first silent movies to the latest blockbusters - and biographical information for over 40,000 personalities. Film Index International includes records on films from over 170 countries and has extensive coverage of international film awards. Its rich content also includes searchable plot summaries and full cast and crew lists, as well as references to periodical articles on film and filmmakers.
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Film & Television Literature Index with Full TextCovers over 300 journal and magazine titles for film and tv reviews, scholarly and critical analysis of cinema and television, as well as pop culture related to film and tv. About half the journals and magazines are film periodicals and the other half cover film and television with some regularity.
Film and Television Literature Index is the new and expanded online version of the print title, Film Literature Index. Those volumes are on Row 17, Davis Reference Department, and cover 1973 to 2004.
Interdisciplinary indexes that include film reviews and analysis:
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Art & Architecture SourceIncludes full-text coverage of over 760 journals and 220 books from fine, decorative, and commercial art, as well as architecture and architectural design. It also provides detailed indexing and abstracts for many other leading academic journals, magazines and trade publications for which full-text is not available. It has strong international coverage, including periodicals published in French, Italian, German, Spanish and Dutch. Includes and expands on the coverage and contents of Art Index Retrospective, Art Index, Art Abstracts, Art Full Text, and Art & Architecture Complete.
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Arts & Humanities Citation Index (A&HCI)1980-Present. Arts & Humanities Citation Index covers 1,100 of the world's leading arts and humanities journals, as well as covering individually selected, relevant items from over 6,800 major science and social science journals.
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Nexis UniProvides full-text access to general, regional and international news, company news and financial information, legal information, and other topics such as biographical information. It covers general, regional and international news, company news and financial information, legal information (including law reviews, case law and legal rulings), and other topics such as biographical information. Many of the files are full-text.
Newspapers:
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Newspaper Source Plus1995-Present. Abstracts and indexing for The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, full-text of the Christian Science Monitor, also full-text for a wide selection of Knight-Ridder papers.
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New York Times Historical Newspaper1851-1998. 3,400,000 pages of full-text and full-image articles covering the entire publishing history of the newspaper. Includes reviews reprinted in the The New York Times Film Reviews set, above and any other film-related articles, interviews, etc. in the paper
Websites
The Black Film Center Archive
The Black Film Center/Archive is a repository of films and related materials by and about African Americans, including films which have substantial participation by blacks as writers, actors, producers, directors, musicians, and consultants, as well as those which depict some aspect of black experience. Primarily a resource list of historic and contemporary Hollywood and independent films, the site is enhanced by a selection of historical film clips and a good collection of links.
blackfilm.com
This site serves as a resource for those interested in contemporary Black cinema. Reviews of Black produced, directed or starred in films are provided along with information on upcoming screenings of new films. Also features full-length articles, news about video and DVD releases, as well as information about conferences, screenings, and other events.
California Newsreel
California Newsreel is a distributor of documentary film. The African American Perspectives collection includes films about African American history and culture. The Library of African Cinema includes feature, as well as documentary, films about African life and culture.
MDC Filmfinder
FilmFinder is a searchable database of the more than 10,000 film titles available in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Undergraduate Library's Media & Design Center.
Separate Cinema
The focus of this site is to preserve the history and art of African Americans in film. This organization holds an extensive archive of "movie posters, lobby cards, stills and other materials" about Black cinema. The site includes online exhibits of movie posters in such categories as Blaxploitation, Harlem Goes West, and New Black Hollywood.
- Last Updated: Jan 19, 2021 10:47 AM
- URL: https://guides.lib.unc.edu/afamfilm
Subjects:
African-American Studies
