PitchBLACK 22 | Black Public Media

APRIL 26-28, 2022

Daily Show Comedian/Producer CJ Hunt will emcee PitchBLACK Photo by Nick Urrutia

FILM WINNERS

Marlene McCurtis

Wednesdays In Mississippi

Joy Silverman

Wednesdays In Mississippi

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE FILM WINNERS

CONGRATULATIONS to the 2022 PitchBLACK Award winners. Click here to view our press release announcing the winners and here for coverage of the event in Current.

Thanks to all who joined us for the 2022 PitchBLACK Forum and Awards program, to our phenomenal emcee, Filmmaker/Comedian CJ Hunt, and finally to our a keynote speaker Filmmaker/Director/Producer Dawn Porter. The Awards ceremony's salute to the 2022 BPM Trailblazer Award winner Orlando Bagwell was as inspiring as it was heartwarming and the pitches by this year's traditional and immersive media makers were all powerful. BPM is pleased to have been able to award $225K in project funding and thanks our sponsors for making that possible.

2022 BPM TRAILBLAZER

Documentary Filmmaker Orlando Bagwell

Photo courtesy of the Bagwell family

DawnPorter_Headshot_Kevin Scanlon (1)_edited

Filmmaker/Producer/Director Dawn Porter. Photo by Kevin Scanlon

IMMERSIVE WINNERS

Tamara Shogaolu

40 Acres

Leonardo Souza

Rabiola Open Skies

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE IMMERSIVE WINNERS

AWARDS CEREMONY

PitchBLACK Forum: Film

Tuesday, April 26, 1-5 p.m. ET

(invitation only)

The first day of PitchBLACK Forum is an invitation-only virtual event devoted to a high-stakes competition among filmmakers who pitch their projects to a panel of industry experts in hopes of being selected to receive up to $150K in project funding.

This year’s Forum features five pitches by filmmaker teams working on a variety of feature-length projects. The projects being pitched include: Bound by Blood, pitched by Llewellyn Smith and Franziska Blome; Brigidy Bram by Laura Gamse and Kareem Mortimer; Hollow Tree, pitched by Kira Ackerman and Monique Walton; Travel Notes of a GeeChee Girl, pitched by Julie Dash and Rachel Watanabe-Batton; and Wednesdays in Mississippi, pitched by Marlene McCurtis and Joy Silverman.

Forum winners will be announced at the PitchBLACK Awards ceremony on April 28, which is open to the public.

READ ABOUT THE FILM PROJECTS

PitchBLACK Forum: Immersive

Wednesday, April 27, 1-5 p.m. ET

(free and open to the public)

In 2021, PitchBLACK Forum hosted a virtual XR Showcase featuring recent BPMplus fellows and other creatives working in the emerging media field. The Immersive Day at PitchBLACK Forum 2022 marks the first time, BPM will award project grants to creatives working in the immersive media field. This year’s virtual event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

Grant awards totaling $75K will be awarded. A jury will watch six pitches from filmmakers and artists based in Brazil, Canada and the U.S. before choosing the winners.

The Immersive competition grantees will be announced during the PitchBLACK Awards, a free virtual event that is open to the public. Click below for details about the creatives and projects in competition.

WATCH IMMERSIVE PITCHES

PitchBLACK Awards

Thursday, April 28, 7-8 p.m. ET

(free and open to the public)

The PitchBLACK Awards ceremony celebrates Black media storytellers by honoring the past (BPMTrailblazer Award), the present (PitchBLACK Forum grants), and the future (Nonso Christian Ugbode Emerging Media Fellowship).

The BPM Trailblazer Award recognizes accomplished makers who've distinguished themselves both with their craft and in the mentoring of emerging makers. Past recipients include: Michèle Stephenson and Joe Brewster (2019) of Rada Film Group, and Marco Williams (2021).

The NCU Fellowship recognizes groundbreaking makers under age 30 who work in in immersive media. Past NCU fellows include Kian Kelley-Chung (2019) and Josie Williams (2021).

The 2022 PitchBLACK Awards ceremony is a virtual event and is open to the public, but registration is required.

GET THE PitchBLACK PROGRAM BOOK