| In 1971, Melvin Van Peebles s independently produced film Sweet Sweetback s Baadasssss Song became the top-grossing independent film of that year, helped usher in the blaxploitation genre, and served as the flag-bearer for independent filmmakers. Melvin s original diary of his struggles to conceptualize, finance, film, and distribute Sweetback will become an indispensable guide for aspiring filmmakers. Melvin is the authentic pioneer, and his achievement-and the determination he displayed-are eye-opening and inspiring. As son Mario Van Peebles (who made his debut in Sweetback) recalls in his Introduction, [Melvin] was forced to self-finance, constantly on the brink of ruin, his crew got arrested and jailed, death threats, and yet [at first] he refused to submit his film to the all-white MPAA ratings board for approval. The film then received an X rating. >My dad, true to form, printed t-shirts that read: Rated X ... by an all white jury - and made it part of his marketing campaign.< Mario reflects on his father s example and contrasts Melvin s guerrilla filmmaking with the possibilities-technological, economic, and cultural-open to filmmakers, especially black filmmakers, today. Photographs are included in this incredible filmmaking manifesto.
Taschenbuch: 216 Seiten, Sprache: Englisch
Verlag: Thunder s Mouth Press
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