Agency

7

Agency7

I Am Somebody (1970)

Theme Overview

The civil rights and Black Power movements, along with the women’s rights movement and protests against the Vietnam War, urban blight, and unemployment, significantly influenced moviemaking in the 1960s and early 1970s. Black cinema made at this time promoted cultural nationalism and self-reliance. Meanwhile, Hollywood was experiencing an economic lull: television was growing in popularity, audiences were losing interest in lighthearted movies, and major film company monopolies were being broken up.

This section features five Black directors active during this period—Madeline Anderson, Robert L. Goodwin, William Greaves, Gordon Parks, and Melvin Van Peebles—whose films provided the spark for a new era that began around 1971. Many elements that would later emerge in so-called blaxploitation movies, including Black empowerment and youth-oriented high-action drama, are reflected in the works presented here. Some films highlighted community issues and women’s rights via documentary, while others adopted a more expansive approach to narrative film, but all were committed to engaging and embodying Black communities. This common thread is also evident in early cinema and the race film era. Ultimately, these filmmakers serve as a reminder of the incredible power of visual storytelling.

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