Events
27TH ANNUAL URBANWORLD FILM FESTIVAL OPENS WITH ‘AMERICAN FICTION’ SCREENING FEATURING DIRECTOR CORD JEFFERSON AND Q&A MODERATED BY FILMMAKER MALCOLM D. LEE
(NEW YORK, NY) – November 2, 2023 – Urbanworld kicked off its 27th festival at the SVA Theatre last night with a sold out Opening Night screening of the buzzy film American Fiction. Prior to the screening, director Cord Jefferson was presented with the Visionary Award by Urbanworld Festival Director Karen McMullen. Following a rousing standing ovation by the audience, celebrated filmmaker Malcolm D. Lee (The Best Man) moderated the Q&A. The evening ended with an afterparty at The Skylark NYC.
Writer-Director-Producer Cord Jefferson was honored with the “Visionary Award” which recognizes filmmakers whose work pushes boundaries and sparks dialogue; and also celebrates the work of the ensemble cast.
AMERICAN FICTION is Cord Jefferson’s hilarious directorial debut, which confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes. Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write an outlandish “Black” book of his own, a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.
Written for the Screen and Directed by: Cord Jefferson
Based upon the novel ‘Erasure’ by: Percival Everett
Produced by: Ben LeClair, p.g.a., Nikos Karamigios, p.g.a., Cord Jefferson, p.g.a., Jermaine Johnson, p.g.a.
Executive Producers: Rian Johnson, Ram Bergman, Percival Everett, Michael Bowes
Cast: Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, Keith David, with Issa Rae and Sterling K. Brown
Rated: R for language throughout, some drug use, sexual references and brief violence
In Select Theaters December 15 Expanding December 22
Follow Urbanworld on Instagram at @urbanworldff, or on Facebook at Facebook.com/Urbanworld.Film.Festivals. Visit urbanworld.org for tickets and screening times.
