Diversity in Cannes

The Cannes Film Festival is undoubtedly the largest and most prestigious film festival of its kind. Each year, the city plays host to thousands of industry professionals from around the world. However, in 75 years, the Cannes Film Festival has only selected one black woman director in competition. The Diversity in Cannes initiative has responded by working to celebrate black women in film in France and beyond.

Join us for an evening of conversation and short films directed by black women from the diaspora, including Christine Rodriguez of Canada and UC Santa Barbara’s very own Wendy Eley Jackson (Film and Media Studies), all of whom are past participants in the Diversity in Cannes Short Film Showcase. Immediately following the screening, Diversity in Cannes founder Yolonda Brinkley and filmmaker Wendy Eley Jackson will join moderator Mireille Miller-Young (Feminist Studies, UCSB) to discuss Brinkley’s diversity initiative, the serious representation gaps in the international film industry, and strategies for black women and their allies to effect change globally.