The Knockturnal had the privilege of attending the fifth American Black Film Festival Honors. The annual awards season gala pays tribute to black excellence in the television and cinema industry. It is a timely celebration that precedes the Oscars, and it is a unique awards show in the sense the event focuses on honoring and celebrating black artists, rather than winners and losers. This awards show is significant because without it, there may be black artists that get overlooked. Interviewees emphasized the importance of the general public seeing work that represents black individuals created by black artists. The creatives reinforced the idea that television and cinema informed by black artists has the capacity to change the audiences’ perceptions through accurately depicted representation.
