Friday, December 25, 2015


BDC Family    

Congratulations to all of our members for another year of wonderful work and success!  Thank you to all of the filmmakers who joined BDC
this year, and for the continued support of our long-time members.  Please check out our updated member perks below, and if you haven't joined/renewed, please consider doing so before the new year!  

Remember, it's tax-deductible!

Wishing everyone a joyful holiday season!

Click the image to watch the New York Times portrait of BDC Founder St. Clair Bourne, 
by renowned photographer Chester Higgins, Jr. in 2006


Membership is $50 for the year! That's just $4/month :-)
Tax-Deductible!

This Holiday Season, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to the Black Documentary Collective (BDC).  From the beginning, BDC founder, the great documentarian St. Clair Bourne, envisioned the BDC as a singular networking and mentorship organization for documentary film, video, and media professionals of African descent.  The BDC Mission is to support the career and artistic development of its members through networking, education, outreach, partnerships and peer support.

More than a professional media organization, St. Clair sought to create a COMMUNITY, where we would work together, support each other and grow to become an influential presence in the world of documentary filmmaking.

Over the years, a small band of BDC member volunteers have been working tirelessly to keep Saint's mission alive and growing.  We have changed with the times, building our social media presence, supporting online fundraising campaigns, promoting broadcasts, festival and theatrical runs, assisting with outreach, engagement and audience-building, and creating meaningful partnerships with media organizations and service providers to give our members access to free and discounted workshops, panels and production services.

The list of projects the BDC has supported over the years is too many to list here, but among our highlights are Thomas Allen Harris' Through A Lens Darkly, Carol Bash's Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band, Yoruba Richen's The New Black, Lacey Schwartz'  Little White Lie, Michele Stephenson's American Promise, Stanley Nelson's The Black Panthers, and Sabrina Schmidt Gordon's BaddDDD Sonia Sanchez.


Here is a reminder of some of the 
many benefits BDC can give to you!
  • NEW! "Pass Through" Fiscal Sponsorship - members can now benefit from BDC's non-profit status to raise money for their projects, at a competitive, low rate
  • Workshop discounts from our media partners (ie, Women Make Movies, Third World Newsreel, and others throughout the country)
  • Professional services discounts (ie, FRAMERUNNER full service post services)
  • Promotional support for screenings, premieres, festival and theatrical runs, etc.
  • Outreach and Engagement support
  • Work-in-progress/Feedback screenings
  • BDC Screening Series in Manhattan and Brooklyn
  • Fundraising/Crowdfunding support throughout the campaign on all social media platforms
  • Free listing in BDC database (note: this has been an invaluable tool for the many requests we get, especially from educators and programmers.  With your support, we can make it even easier for them to find you by having all the information in one place, online and searchable)
  • Inclusion in the new BDC listserv
  • Job listings and referrals (for both employers and jobseekers)
  • Panels/Speaker series

How else can BDC help you?  If you have a request, need for support, let us know!  This is what the BDC is about.  Email us at bdcnewyork@gmail.com

If you're already a member, THANK YOU, and please consider 
making a tax-deductible donation to support the BDC.  
Any amount helps and is greatly appreciated!
* * *

BDC Partner News
  
  Framerunner, a High Definition post-production facility, offers a special discount to BDC Members on all professional services.  

Framerunner is pleased to announce that it has moved into their new facility on 56th Street & 10th Avenue, co-habitating with audio post house, Sync Sound! 

Framerunner and Sync Sound will remain two separate companies, and they can now provide BDC filmmakers with both video & audio finishing under one roof!
BDC post production collaborator Keith Shapiro is also now the owner!
Framerunner has provided color grading and finishing for BDC filmmakers including most recent documentaries: Stanley Nelson's The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, Carol Bash's Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band,  BaddDDD Sonia Sanchez, 
& countless other award-winning films.

Framerunner offers special discounts to BDC Members for all professional services, from color grading and finishing in DaVinci Resolve, Avid, Final Cut Pro, & Premiere Pro, DCP, 5.1 & stereo blu-rays, file and tape mastering, conversions, duplication, and Sound Editing and Mixing.

Congratulations to Framerunner on their new venture, and we look forward to continuing a successful relationship with the BDC!

For more information, please contact:
Keith Shapiro
Grand Poobah
Framerunner
keith@framerunner.com
212-246-4224
450 West 56th Street, NYC, 10019
* * *

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

BDC Gives on #GivingTuesday; Remembering World AIDS Day with Wilhemina's War; WMM "After Tiller" Workshop; Torture of Mothers Screening at Dwyer


 

It's #GivingTuesday, and here's what BDC can give to you!
Click the image to watch the New York Times portrait of BDC Founder St. Clair Bourne, 
by renowned photographer Chester Higgins, Jr. in 2006


Membership is $50 for the year! That's just $4/month :-)

On #GivingTuesday, we'd like to take a moment to reflect on the mission and vision of Black Documentary Collective founder, the great documentarian St. Clair Bourne.  From the beginning, Saint envisioned the BDC as a singular networking and mentorship organization for documentary film, video, and media professionals of African descent.  The BDC Mission is to support the career and artistic development of its members through networking, education, outreach, partnerships and peer support.

More than a professional media organization, St. Clair sought to create a COMMUNITY, where we would work together, support each other and grow to become an influential presence in the world of documentary filmmaking.

Over the years, a small band of BDC member volunteers have been working tirelessly to keep Saint's mission alive and growing.  We have changed with the times, building our social media presence, supporting online fundraising campaigns, promoting broadcasts, festival and theatrical runs, assisting with outreach, engagement and audience-building, and creating meaningful partnerships with media organizations and service providers to give our members access to free and discounted workshops, panels and production services.

The list of projects the BDC has supported over the years is too many to list here, but among our highlights are Thomas Allen Harris' Through A Lens Darkly, Carol Bash's Mary Lou Williams: The Lady Who Swings the Band, Yoruba Richen's The New Black, Lacey Schwartz'  Little White Lie, Michele Stephenson's American Promise, Stanley Nelson's The Black Panthers, and Sabrina Schmidt Gordon's BaddDDD Sonia Sanchez.


On #GivingTuesday,
here is a reminder of the many benefits BDC can give to you!
  • NEW! "Pass Through" Fiscal Sponsorship - members can now benefit from BDC's non-profit status to raise money for their projects, at a competitive, low rate
  • Workshop discounts from our media partners (ie, Women Make Movies, Third World Newsreel, and others throughout the country)
  • Professional services discounts (ie, FRAMERUNNER full service post services)
  • Promotional support for screenings, premieres, festival and theatrical runs, etc.
  • Outreach and Engagement support
  • Work-in-progress/Feedback screenings
  • BDC Screening Series in Manhattan and Brooklyn
  • Fundraising/Crowdfunding support throughout the campaign on all social media platforms
  • Free listing in BDC database (note: this has been an invaluable tool for the many requests we get, especially from educators and programmers.  With your support, we can make it even easier for them to find you by having all the information in one place, online and searchable)
  • Inclusion in the new BDC listserv
  • Job listings and referrals (for both employers and jobseekers)
  • Panels/Speaker series

How else can BDC help you?  If you have a request, need for support, let us know!  This is what the BDC is about.  Email us at bdcnewyork@gmail.com

If you're already a member, THANK YOU, and please consider 
making a tax-deductible donation to support the BDC
Any amount helps and is greatly appreciated!

* * *
Let's remember that today is also World AIDS Day.

BDC Member June Cross' new film, Wilhemina's War, is about a Southern grandmother's struggle to help her loved ones through the scourge of HIV.  AIDS is one of the leading causes of death for Black women in the rural South.  Please check out trailer and go to the website to find out what you can do.

Wilhemina's War
by June Cross
(click pix to watch trailer/go to website)
* * *
(click logo above for tickets and more information)

After Tiller: A Case Study of the Making and Launch of a Highly Successful Film
Wednesday, December 9th | 6:30-8:30pm

After Tiller, an intimate portrait of the lives of the four most-targeted abortion providers in the country, was one of the most successful documentaries of the past year. The film which premiered at Sundance, was released theatrically in more than 50 cities and broadcast nationally on POV, has won numerous awards including a recent Emmy for Best Documentary and received nearly universal critical acclaim. It was named one of the five best documentaries of the year by the National Board of Review, and featured in "Best of 2013" lists in the LA Times, Village Voice, Indiewire, Artforum, among others. We're delighted to be joined by the film's Co-Director/Co-Producers, Lana Wilson and Martha Shane, for an in-depth conversation about their filmmaking process from pre-production to launch. This wide-ranging case study will cover the struggle for funding, creative choices, designing a roll out strategy and engagement/outreach campaign.

Don't miss this rare behind-the-scenes opportunity to understand the many decisions involved in making and releasing a highly successful and impactful film.
* * *
The Torture of Mothers
by Woodie King

The Dwyer Center
258 St. Nicholas Ave., Harlem, NYC
Friday, December 18, 2015, 6 PM

Followed by Q&A and Holiday Reception!

(click pix for tickets & more information)
The Torture of Mothers, starring Ruby Dee, is a "docudrama" which explores the universally pertinent story of a brave group of mothers forced to defend their falsely accused sons. The young men, who became known to millions as "The Harlem Six," soon became the force which united a community in the name of justice.

Followed by a Q&A with director Woodie King, moderated by Eric V. Tait, Jr., 
and a Holiday Reception!
* * *