The Help, Jumping the Broom, Mooz-Lum, Shame all score multiple film noms

Fishburne, Boyega, Spencer, Oduye, Wayans, DuVernay and McQueen all secure multiple nods

Pariah, the story of a Brooklyn lesbian teenager searching for her sexual expression led the field with nine nominations as the Foundation for the Advancement of African-Americans in Film (FAAAF) announced its nominees Wednesday for its 12^th annual Black Reel Awards.

They were followed closely by both The Help and Jumping the Broom, which each garnered seven nominations, Mooz-Lum (which collected six), the sexual addiction drama, Shame which took home five nomination and the  educational drama, The First Grader, which received four nods.

The Black Reel Awards comprised of more than 50 voters across the country annually select and spotlight films and performances featuring African-Americans as well as people of color throughout the African Diaspora. In a year with limited major studio releases, independent and international films dominate the awards nomination landscape like no previous campaigns.

Pariah, the debut film from writer/director Dee Rees garnered nine nominations including Outstanding Film, Outstanding Actress for Adepero Oduye as well as Outstanding Supporting Actress for Kim Wayans. In addition, both Wayans and Oduye also were nominated for Outstanding Breakthrough Performance category.

Rees, a protégé of Spike Lee, also received dual nominations for Outstanding Director and Outstanding Screenplay, Original or Adapted for her semi-autobiographical tale in which a young woman struggles as she learns that by accepting her identity, her life becomes increasingly chaotic.

The Help secured several nods including Outstanding Film and nods in the major categories for both Oscar hopefuls Viola Davis (Outstanding Actress) and two for Octavia Spencer (Outstanding Supporting Actress and Outstanding Breakthrough Performance).  Meanwhile Laz Alonso (Outstanding Actor), Mike Epps (Outstanding Supporting Actor) and previous Black Reel Awards winner, Angela Bassett (Outstanding Supporting Actress) were also recognized for Jumping the Broom.

Leading the field in the Television category was Five. The film collected four nominations including Outstanding Television Film, and Outstanding Television Performances, Female for Rosario Dawson, Jenifer Lewis and Tracee Ellis Ross. Ross and and her brother, Evan Ross (Outstanding Actor for Mooz-Lum) make history as the first set of siblings to be nominated in the same year for Black Reel Awards. Also vying for this year’s top prize for Outstanding Television or Mini-Series will be the successful stage plays turned films Thurgood and The Sunset Limited, the powerful tale of a determined mother, Taken From Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story and the brilliant BBC series, Luther.

In the three Independent categories, nominees were assembled primarily of winners from the four major African-American film festivals, The Pan African Film Festival, Hollywood Black Film Festival, American Black Film Festival and the Urbanworld Film Festival and will contend for Outstanding Independent honors.

Several actors and directors scored multiple nominations including Attack the Block’s John Boyega (Outstanding Actor and Outstanding Breakthrough), Laurence Fishburne (Outstanding Supporting Actor for Contagion and Outstanding Television Performance, Male for Thurgood), director/writer, Ava DuVernay (Outstanding Director and Outstanding Screenplay, Original or Adapted for I Will Follow), British writer/director Steve McQueen (Outstanding Director and Outstanding Screenplay), Wayans, Oduye and Spencer.

In the Outstanding Song category, multiple Grammy Awards winners/nominees will compete  against a novice when Mary J. Blige (The Help), Cee-Lo Green (Footloose), Ludacris (Fast Five), four-time Black Reel Awards winner Jamie Foxx (Rio) will square off against past Black Reel Award Outstanding Actress nominee, Nicole Beharie (My Last Day Without You).

Despite winning the equivalent of six African Oscars last year, Viva Riva was only able to secure one nomination this year in the newly-created Outstanding Foreign Film category. The entry from the Democratic Republic of the Congo will compete against entries from the UK (Attack the Block), Rwanda (Kinyarwanda), Kenya (The First Grader) and South Africa (Life, Above All).

The 12^th Annual Black Reel Awards winners will be announced on Friday, February 10^th in Washington, DC.

The nominations for the 2012 Black Reel Awards:

Outstanding Actor
John Boyega – Attack the Block
Demián Bichir– A Better Life
Laz Alonso – Jumping the Broom
Oliver Litondo – The First Grader
Evan Ross – Mooz-Lum

Outstanding Actress
Viola Davis – The Help
Adepero Oduye – Pariah
Zoe Saldana – Columbiana
Nia Long – Mooz-Lum
Naomie Harris – The First Grader

Outstanding Supporting Actor
Anthony Mackie – The Adjustment Bureau
Don Cheadle – The Guard
Isiah Whitlock Jr. – Cedar Rapids
Laurence Fishburne – Contagion
Mike Epps – Jumping the Broom

Outstanding Supporting Actress
Octavia Spencer – The Help
Maya Rudolph – Bridesmaids
Kim Wayans – Pariah
Pernell Walker – Pariah
Angela Bassett – Jumping the Broom

Outstanding Screenplay, Original or Adapted
Steve McQueen and Abi Morgan – Shame
Qasim Bashir – Mooz-Lum
Dee Rees – Pariah
Ava DuVernay – I Will Follow
Elizabeth Hunter and Arlene Gibbs – Jumping the Broom

Outstanding Director
Steve McQueen – Shame
Dee Rees – Pariah
Qasim Bashir – Mooz-Lum
Ava DuVernay – I Will Follow
Salim Akil – Jumping the Broom

Outstanding Film
Pariah
Shame
The Help
Attack the Block
Jumping the Broom

Outstanding Breakthrough Performance
Octavia Spencer – The Help
Adepero Oduye – Pariah
John Boyega – Attack the Block
Kim Wayans – Pariah
Gugu Mbatha-Raw – Larry Crowne

Outstanding Ensemble
Pariah
Attack the Block
The Help
Mooz-Lum
Fast Five
Jumping the Broom

Outstanding Original Song
The Living Proof – Mary J. Blige (The Help)
Walkin’ Blues – Cee-Lo Green featuring Kenny Wayne Shepherd (Footloose)
Furiously Dangerous – Ludacris (Fast Five)
Fly Love – Jamie Foxx (Rio)
My Last Day Without You – Nicole Beharie (My Last Day Without You)

Outstanding Score
Harry Escott – Shame
Steven Price – Attack the Block
Misha Segal – Mooz-Lum
Thomas Newman – The Help
Alex Heffes – The First Grader

Outstanding Foreign Film
Attack the Block
The First Grader
Kinyarwanda
Life, Above All
Viva Riva!

Outstanding Feature Documentary
Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey – Constance Marks
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of a Tribe Called Quest – Michael Rapaport
The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 – Goran Olsson
Undefeated – Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Martin
The Interrupters – Steve James

Outstanding Independent Feature Film
My Last Day Without You – Stefan C. Schaefer
The Tested – Russell Constanzo
Mamitas – Nicholas Ozeki
Besouro – João Daniel Tikhomiroff
Billy – Winston Washington Moxam

Outstanding Independent Short Film
Fig – Ryan Coogler
Wolf Call – Rob Underhill
Wake – Bree Newsome
The Abyss Boys – Jan-Hendrik Beetge
The Tombs – Jerry Lamonthe

Outstanding Independent Documentary
Infiltrating Hollywood: The Rise and Fall of the Spook Who Sat By the Door – Christine Acham and Clifford Ward
Gang Girl: A Mother’s Journey to Save Her Daughter – Valerie Goodloe
Brown Babies – Regina Griffin
Zero Percent – Tim Skousen
The Manuscripts of Timbuktu – Zola Maseko
Burn: The Evolution of An American City – Harold Jackson III

Outstanding Television or Mini-Series Performance, Male
Idris Elba – Luther
Laurence Fishburne – Thurgood
Samuel L. Jackson – The Sunset Limited
Eric Benet – Trinity Goodheart
Mykelti Williamson – Have A Little Faith

Outstanding Television or Mini-Series Performance, Female
Taraji P. Henson – Taken From Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story
Anika Noni Rose – Bag of Bones
Rosario Dawson – Five
Jenifer Lewis – Five
Tracee Ellis Ross – Five

Outstanding Television Documentary                                                                
Planet Rock: The Story of Hip Hop and the Crack Generation – VH1 (Richard Low and Martin Torgoff)
Pray the Devil Back to Hell – PBS (Gini Reticker)
The Fab Five – ESPN (Jason Hehir)
Black in Latin America – PBS (Henry Louis Gates)
The Latino List – HBO (Timothy Greenfield-Sanders)

Outstanding Television or Mini-Series Film
Thurgood – HBO (Michael Stevens)
Luther – BBC (Katie Swinden)
Five – Lifetime (Nellie Nugiel)
The Sunset Limited – HBO (Barbara A. Hall)
Taken From Me: The Tiffany Rubin Story – Lifetime (Harvey Kahn)

This year’s awards will be comprised of 20 categories spanning theatrical, television and independent film featuring African-Americans. Absent many of Black Hollywood heavyweights and past Black Reel Awards nominees such as Spike Lee, Will Smith, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett and Denzel Washington, this year’s show will usher in many new faces and could serve as a changing of the guard in Tinseltown.

Much of the buzz has been centered on several popular films such as the surprise hit, The Help, the wedding comedy, Jumping the Broom and the dark and intense sexually addition drama, Shame.

This year was a strong year for independent films which took a major step forward with Ava DuVernay’s AFFRM movement which produced both the tender drama, I Will Follow and Alrick Brown’s Kinyarwanda. Other notable indies included Dee Ree’s powerful lesbian coming of age tale, Pariah, the Muslim-American drama, Qasim Bashir’s Mooz-Lum, Russ Parr’s ensemble comedy, 35 and Ticking, the underground British alien film, Attack the Block and the Congolese crime drama, Viva Riva!

There are also many notable performances to look out for including favorites such as Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer from the Help, Laurence Fishburne’s dual performances in both Thurgood and Contagion, Evan Ross’ dynamic turn in Mooz-Lum, John Boyega’s heroic breakthrough in Attack the Block and the child-like innocence displayed by Pariah’s Adepero Oduye.

Some of the sleepers that could surprise voters this year include Salli Richardson-Whitfield in I Will Follow, Nia Long’s strong performance in Mooz-Lum, an almost unrecognizable sexy performance from Nicole Beharie in Shame and a wonderful dramatic turn from comedic actress Kim Wayans in Pariah.

The 12th Annual Black Reel Awards will be broadcast on Friday, February 10, 2012 once again on BlogTalkRadio beginning at 7:30pm.

Tyler Perry Gets Lots of Nominations but Only a Few Awards

Washington D.C. — Sometimes, the frontrunner isn’t the first one to cross the finish line. Although it was nominated a staggering 14 times (a Black Reel Awards record), Tyler Perry’s sexual abuse drama, For Colored Girls took home only three awards this year. By contrast, Night Catches Us, the story of a man whose dark past will not let him go, nearly swept its nominations, winning five of the seven categories in which it was nominated, including Outstanding Film, Outstanding Screenplay (Tanya Hamilton), Outstanding Actor (five-time nominee Anthony Mackie, who also won last year in the Outstanding Supporting Actor category for The Hurt Locker), Outstanding Actress (Kerry Washington) and Outstanding Score (The Roots).

For Colored Girls’ victories went to Outstanding Supporting Actress (Phylicia Rashad), Outstanding Ensemble, and Outstanding Breakthrough Performance (Tessa Thompson). “It was thought that For Colored Girls might be the film that elevated Tyler Perry from a niche filmmaker to a true industry player,” said Tim Gordon, Executive Director and founder of the Black Reel Awards, “but it looks like he still has a ways to go—at least as far as the critics are concerned.”

The coveted Outstanding Director prize went to The Hughes Brothers for the apocalyptic thriller The Book of Eli, while Outstanding Supporting Actor went to Wesley Snipes for his role in the crime drama, Brooklyn’s Finest. John Legend won Outstanding Song for “Shine,” from the education documentary Waiting for Superman, which also won for Outstanding Feature Documentary.

“This was a rough year,” said Gordon. “There’s just no way around it. However, in a year that fell short of many of our expectations and standards, it was refreshing to see a young filmmaker like Tanya break out in a major way! We look forward to seeing what she’ll tackle next.” “In a year that was below our standards, it was refreshing to see a young filmmaker break out in a major way!”

Preacher’s Kid won the award for Outstanding Independent, while Katrina’s Son took home the award for Outstanding Independent Short. Outstanding Independent Documentary and Outstanding Television Documentary went to For the Best and For the Onion and If God is Willing and Da Creek Don’t Rise respectively.

Below are all your 2011 Black Reel Awards winners:

Outstanding Film
Night Catches Us | Magnolia

Outstanding Director
Tanya Hamilton – Night Catches Us

Outstanding Actor
Anthony Mackie – Night Catches Us

Outstanding Actress
Kerry Washington – Night Catches Us

Outstanding Supporting Actor
Wesley Snipes – Brooklyn’s Finest

Outstanding Supporting Actress
Phylicia Rashad – For Colored Girls

Outstanding Score
The Roots – Night Catches Us

Outstanding Song
Shine (John Legend) – Waiting for Superman

Outstanding Ensemble
For Colored Girls | Lionsgate

Outstanding Breakthrough Performance
Tessa Thompson – For Colored Girls

Outstanding Feature Documentary
Waiting for Superman

Outstanding Independent
Preacher’s Kid | Warner Bros.

Outstanding Independent Short
Katrina’s Son | Ya’ke

Outstanding Independent Documentary
For the Best and For the Onion

Outstanding Television Documentary
If God is Willing and Da Creek Don’t Rise

Since we awarded the inaugural Outstanding Film statuette to The Hurricane, we have compiled a list of classic, memorable winners that have headline their respective award classes. Before we determine this year’s winner of our top prize, we take a look back to discover which film was your favorite from the first ten years.

View This Poll

The actor who defined acting for an entire generation as well as serving as a role model for ALL African-American actors, Sidney Poitier was the recipient of the 20th AFI Lifetime Achievement Award in 1992.

In night heavy on tributes and dedications, the essence of the man was saluted by a bevy of colleagues and admirers including Harry Belafonte, Tony Curtis, Rod Steiger, Bill Cosby, Louis Gossett, Jr, Denzel Washington and others who all to a person spoke with reverence and respect for incredible achievements. To say that Poitier is a trailblazer would be to ignore that he overcame incredible odds to become the first Black leading man in major motion pictures in 1950.

In 1963, Poitier became the first black person to win an Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in Lilies of the Field. The significance of this achievement was later bolstered in 1967 when he starred in three well-received films—To Sir, with Love; In the Heat of the Night; and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner—making him the top box office star of that year. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Poitier among the Greatest Male Stars of All Time, ranking 22nd on the list of 25.

Poitier has directed a number of popular movies such as A Piece of the Action; Uptown Saturday Night, and Let’s Do It Again (with friend Bill Cosby), and Stir Crazy (starring Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder). In 2002, 38 years after receiving the Best Actor Award, Poitier was chosen by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to receive an Honorary Award, designated “To Sidney Poitier in recognition of his remarkable accomplishments as an artist and as a human being.” Since 1997 he has been the Bahamian ambassador to Japan. On August 12, 2009, Sidney Poitier was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States of America’s highest civilian honor, by President Barack Obama.

Below are clips from the show.

Denzel Washington

Harry Belafonte

Morgan Freeman

John Singleton

James Earl Jones & Rosa Parks

Rod Steiger

Bill Cosby

Danny Glover

Louis Gossett, Jr.

Tony Curtis

Richard Widmark

Lee Grant

Stanley Kramer

Harry Belafonte sings “Amen”

Sidney Poiter

Two-time Black Reel Awards nominated director Ava DuVernay is back with a tender story of self-discovery the beautiful drama, I Will Follow.

The film chronicles a day in the life of a grieving woman and the twelve visitors who help her move forward. Maye (Salli Richardson-Whitfield) is grappling with the loss of her aunt, Amanda (Beverly Todd), who died of breast cancer.

Slated for release this spring, DuVernay has crafted a winning tale that will serve as the inaugural project for her newly-created venture, the African-American Film Festival Releasing Market (AFFRM).

This year marks the 20th Anniversary of largest class of African-American directors in Hollywood history. During 1991, there were 17 films directed by people of color and throughout the year we’ll spotlight their films and their cultural significance.

First up is the debut film by Brooklyn filmmaker Matty Rich entitled, Straight Out of Brooklyn.  The film is a gritty story about Dennis (played by Larry Gilliard Jr.), an African-American teen living in a housing project with his sister, mother and abusive, alcoholic father. Fed up with his family’s seemingly hopeless future, he plans with his friends to rob a drug dealer.

Rich wrote the screenplay when he was 17. The film was made over a period of two years with an amateur cast working for free. Rich himself plays Dennis’ friend, Larry. He financed much of the budget with credit cards and donations from family members. Rich also raised money by going on a New York City radio station and asking listeners for donations. Listeners donated a total of $77,000. The total budget was $450,000. Upon release, the film was critically acclaimed and grossed $2.7 million at the box office. He was just 19 years old when the film was released.

His film was critically acclaimed and Rich won many awards including an Independent Spirit Award. The success of the film introduced Rich as another major young African-American talent during a time when new filmmakers like Spike Lee, John Singleton, Mario Van Peebles and the Hughes Brothers were also being hailed for their films about African-American culture.

Rich drew the sharp ire of Lee when during  interviews, he proudly stated that even though he dropped out of New York University’s (NYU) famed Tisch School of the Arts after one month (accusing the faculty of racism), he still made a successful film. Lee, a Tisch graduate, accused Rich of being “ignorant.”

Rich’s second film, 1994′s The Inkwell, received mixed reviews but was a commercial failure. He has not made another film since.  In 2005, Rich re-emerged as the director and screenwriter of the video game, 187 Ride or Die which also was a commercial failure.

Currently, Rich lives in Los Angeles with his wife, publicist Leah “Reid” Johnson. While he enjoys the “City of Angels,” surely Brooklyn is never far from his thoughts!

Queen Latifah makes another brief appearance in the Ron Howard film, The Dilemma.

Zoe Saldana headlines an all-star cast of B-list celebrities in the indie comedy, The Heart Specialist.

Director / screenwriter Dennis Cooper has assembled a cast of familiar faces including

Black Reel Award nominee Thandie Newton stars in the dark horror film, Vanishing on 7th Street.