Why not, right? She’s done (and continues to do) just about everything else – acting, singing, dancing, producing, clothing line, perfume… and maybe the toughest of them all – mother. She can do anything she wants, and given her international popularity, I doubt that she’ll have much trouble attracting interest from the studios she’s said to be shopping this upcoming documentary to.

Reported earlier today, Beyoncé Knowles just might make her feature film directorial debut, with a documentary that’s being described as:

… a mix of music and personal study, blending concert footage with confessional interview.

According to the LA Times, in recent weeks, Ms Knowles and her reps have been shopping a non-fiction film to Hollywood studios (showing 20 minutes of footage) that will center on her life and career that she will not only star in of course, but will also direct and produce. 

While it certainly won’t be the first time that Ms Knowles is the subject of a documentary film, it will be the first time that she’s the subject of a documentary film directed by her.

And with the eventful life she’s led in the last few years, baby, husband, split from her father, top-selling albums and singles, Grammy Awards, international popularity, and more, she certainly has plenty to talk about.

We’ll have our antennae on alert for any future developments on this project.

Article source: http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/beyonce-knowles-director-multi-hyphenate-shopping-non-fiction-feature-project-to-studios

I’d love to check this out, and hope it heads west with English subtitles…

It’s a 3-part documentary (3 hours total) that aired on French television earlier this month, titled Noirs de France: De 1889 à nos jours: une histoire de France (or in English The Blacks of France From 1889 to our days – 130 years of shared history).

The title should tell you all you need to know about the film’s content, but here’s a full synop:

From 1889 to our days – 130 years of shared history – this three-part documentary film weaves together many archives and new testimonies to tell us about contemporary French black history over 130 years. This film gives a voice to both the protagonists and the heirs of this history and relays the building of a French Black identity. An old history, a presence which becomes visible with the 1889 World’s Fair. A story which goes through two World wars, the colonial period, the Independencies, and the time of the migrations from the West Indies and Africa, but also from the Indian Ocean, New Caledonia, and from the African American influence since the Interwar period.

As already noted, it aired in 3 parts in France earlier this month, and was released on DVD on the 20th, 3 days ago, but only in France as far as I know.

I couldn’t locate any English-language versions of the film, or the trailer which I embedded below.

But I assume some of our readers in France watched the 3-parter on TV, or may have even already purchased the DVD; if so, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the material.

I’m wondering if there’s a similar aversion to works like this as we here in the states have to programs like CNN’s Black In America series; although Noirs de France seems to be much more comprehensive and historical, and doesn’t necessarily solely focus on the *problems* blacks in France face, but, as the title suggests, a history of that particular group of people in that country, through the present-day. 

We’ve repeatedly written about the black experience in parts of Europe (although from a limited POV), and have covered many black French films here as well, so, like I said, I’m certainly interested.

Watch the trailer below (but again, it’s in French and not subtitled; h/t Afro Europe blog):

NOIRS DE FRANCE (Bande annonce) by Phares-Balises

Article source: http://blogs.indiewire.com/shadowandact/301d2f80-5e71-11e1-9987-123138165f92