Spike Lee is first black person to lead Cannes Film Festival jury
Spike Lee poses during a photo call for the film “BlacK Klansman” at the 71st edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France on May 15, 2018.Alberto Pizzoli / AFP – Getty Images
“BlacK Klansman” director Spike Lee will lead the Cannes Film Festival’s 2020 jury, the festival announced on Tuesday.
Lee will be the first black person in the French festival’s 73-history to serve as jury president, presiding over the body of artists who choose which films will receive an award. He succeeds Alejandro G. Iñárritu, whose 2019 jury awarded the Palme d’Or, the highest prize awarded at the film festival, to Korean director Bong Joon-ho’s “Parasite.”
“In this life I have lived, my biggest blessings have been when they arrived unexpected, when they happened out of nowhere,” Lee wrote in a statement. “When I got the call that I was offered the opportunity to be President of Cannes Jury for 2020, I was shocked, happy, surprised and proud all at the same time.”
Lee, 62, has a long-established history with the festival, dating back to 1986, when his first feature film “She’s Gotta Have It” won the Prix de la Jeunesse in the Director’s Fortnight. Several of his subsequent films, including “Do the Right Thing” (1989), “Jungle Fever” (1991), “Summer of Sam” (1999) and “Ten Minutes Older” (2002) have also been recognized by the festival in various capacities. Lee’s latest movie, “”BlacK Klansman” (2018), won the Grand Prix at Cannes, which Lee credits with being the “launching pad” for the film’s global theatrical release and 2019 Academy Award win for best adapted screenplay.
Ava DuVernay Celebrates Black History Month with Black Cinema
By BGN Staff -January 18, 20200405
ARRAY
Premiering on Netflix February 5th is They’ve Gotta Have Us, a dynamic chronicle of art, activism and race in Black Cinema featuring in-depth interviews with some of Hollywood’s most iconic voices.
They’ve Gotta Have Us was conceived, produced and directed by Simon Frederick, a UK-based self-taught artist, photographer, filmmaker and broadcaster. The series features revealing interviews with many barrier-breaking filmmakers and stars, including Diahann Carroll, John Singleton, Kasi Lemmons, John Boyega, Harry Belafonte, Robert Townsend, David Oyelowo, Whoopi Goldberg, Laurence Fishburne, and Barry Jenkins.
The series also includes clips from and commentary about such seminal films as Carmen Jones, Claudine, Lilies of the Field, Do The Right Thing, Boyz in the Hood, Hollywood Shuffle, Black Panther and Moonlight.
“As a company whose mission is to amplify the voices of people of color, They’ve Gotta Have Us speaks directly to our highest ideas of inclusion, cultural context and community. Not only are we introducing an exciting artist like Simon Frederick to a new audience, but his project shares the stories of Black Cinema’s most influential filmmakers and actors,” said ARRAY President Tilane Jones.
ARRAY was founded in 2010 by Ava DuVernay.
Hi I’m Melvin Best, founder and director of the Harlem Film Institute. I am an educator, avid film lover and all around nice guy.