A report by Kyle Buchanan and Reggie Ugwu looked at the Criterion Collection, the trove of deluxe Blu-rays and DVDs of films by the most highly regarded filmmakers. Of more than 1,000 titles, only six were by African-American filmmakers, and none were by anyone born after 1957.
Criterion’s president, Peter Becker, has been the company’s ultimate decision maker for years, and in an interview he admitted to blind spots, adding, “The fact that things are missing, and specifically that Black voices are missing, is harmful, and that’s clear. We have to fix that.”
In the archive so far are:
“Do the Right Thing” and “Bamboozled” by Spike Lee.
“Symbiopsychotaxiplasm” Takes One and 2½ by William Greaves.
“To Sleep With Anger” by Charles Burnett.
“Body and Soul” by Oscar Micheaux.
(There are also four films by Black directors from other countries: Steve McQueen’s “Hunger,” Djibril Diop Mambéty’s “Touki Bouki,” Ousmane Sembène’s “Black Girl,” and Euzhan Palcy’s “A Dry White Season,” the lone work by a Black woman.)
When it comes to future editions of African-American filmmakers’ work, Becker said “The Learning Tree” by Gordon Parks is due next year, and that he hoped to add “Medicine for Melancholy” by Barry Jenkins. What would you include?
Who Should Be Added to the Collection?
Tell us the filmmakers and movies the Criterion Collection should be considering.
Source: Movies - nytimes.com
