In Denton Thursday, dozens gathered for the first screening of this year’s Denton Black Film Festival, a five-day event designed to give Black stories an audience and Black creatives a platform.
“A lot of these stories have not been told or not been shared. And if you look at history, a lot of people of color, their stories have not been told,” said Director Harry Eaddy.
It’s been 10 years since Eaddy launched the Denton Black Film Festival to showcase the work of Black creatives.
“When we first started we just had hopes and dreams,” said Eaddy.
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This week kicked off a five-day event that will welcome more than 10,000 attendees to screen 85 films, a far cry from the 13 originally seen by 800 people one decade ago.
“I think ultimately what we figured out is that we were a cultural festival,” he said.
Over the years, events have expanded to include other art forms like music and a spoken word competition.
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“The culture brings out different perspectives, your perspective or my perspective, and that’s why I think it’s very important for people to understand more about their own culture but also how to understand and appreciate others’ cultures,” said Eaddy.
Getting more Black stories to the big screen is something Eaddy’s wife and director of film programming Linda Eaddy said they’ve seen more of over the last decade, still, they remain underrepresented and often unrecognized in Hollywood due, in part, to challenges Black filmmakers face getting started.
“Money’s the first one, you know, getting money for your projects is just a big one. And sometimes getting in the door because it’s a people business. It’s who you know,”
That’s why this weekend will be not only a platform for filmmakers like Cynthia Freeman Gibbs, but a chance to network.
“I’ve been to some other film festivals where I may be the only black filmmaker present, and so to be at an event like this where we have so much talent within our community and that’s being showcased, that’s big. That’s really major,” said Gibbs.
10 years in, Eaddy said they’re just getting started.
“We haven’t even hit our stride,” he said.
The festival’s in-person events continue through Jan. 28. It runs virtually through Feb 5.
