Xiongyue Yu’s Black Arts Journal

Topic Characteristics and Social Significance of Black Female Characters in Films Directed by African American Directors from the 1960s to the Mid-1980s   Intro After a semester of studying in classes and materials, I am pleased to have gained a broader and deeper understanding of black art as a cultural field. One of the things that I am most impressed with and interested in continuing to study and research is the experiences and contributions of Black women in this history and culture. In my midterm assignment, I have already conducted a brief analysis of the achievements and contributions of black women artists in this period of history, and in this presentation, I hope to further explore the topic in the context of the representation of black women characters in film and television in the same period of history.   Arguments 1.  Differences between black female characters in film and television and in reality As people often say, art comes from life but is higher than ...

A rthur Jafa  Arthur Jafa is an American video artist and cinematographer. His work has always been steeped in a deep cultural heritage due to his early influences of educated parents and Catholic thinking and concepts. This, coupled with the fact that he grew up watching a lot of science fiction shows, has given him the ability to bring reality to life in a more science fictional way and to have a more compelling way to appreciate the audio and visual artwork he creates. As a result, many of his works are in major art museums, and the beauty and detachment at the heart of the black American experience in Arthur Jafa's work is at the heart of his artistic style.   Love is the Message, The Message is Death This is a seven-minute short film, a stream-of-consciousness collage of videos of black-related social events that occurred, paired with classic songs from various historical eras. The seemingly disorganized video memories come together to form this beautiful and complex work...

Exterminate All the Brutes – Raoul Peck    In just four hours, Raoul Peck's four-part documentary is a documentary and interpretive edit that together reveal a well-known, but tacitly accepted and accustomed American national tradition of white supremacy and imperialism in the flow of history. Such a prose film, full of the maker's personal thoughts and bold artistic features, presents a great and profound story for the viewer. This series of documentaries is not necessarily designed to research or influence a history, but it is certainly designed to leave an unforgettable story and insight in the heart of every viewer.   From the first episode,  The Disturbing Confidence of Ignorance , it is revealed that the birth of Western civilization and its present prosperity was built on a long history of colonialism, genocide, slavery and exploitation. Such a history has created a deep-rooted white supremacy in the United States and Europe, which, although it even became the...

Watermelon   Woman  - Cheryl Dunye   Watermelon Woman is a classic gay-themed film that is a romantic comedy, with the film's director Cheryl Dunye herself playing the lead role in her own film, the first to be directed by a black lesbian who was open about her sexuality. Such an identity makes the film stand as a challenge to recreate history from a queer perspective and use a unique storytelling style, all of which make this a milestone in queer cinema in American history. watermelon woman is a highly textured film that challenges the boundaries between fiction and nonfiction. dunye says many of the characters she plays in the film are autobiographical. But Watermelon Woman's historical references are fictional: "Watermelon Woman was created because there was a real lack of any information about lesbianism and the history of film for African-American women. The name Watermelon Woman may also allude to the watermelon, which often symbolizes life and love, abundance and f...

Original Soul Train Dancers Reminisce  On  What It Took To Dance On Soul Train -  S oul   Train   Soul Train is an American music variety television show that features R&B, soul and hip-hop music, inviting dancers from all walks of life to participate in the show, and thus developing many of its own unique dance forms and styles. Because it has persisted through various changes and restructuring, it has become one of the long-lived TV shows in American history, accompanying the growing years of black Americans in the eighties. As the years passed, Soul Train gradually became an independent tradition. What now seems like an entertainment-oriented television show was a radical move at the time. Because the cultural perspective of African-American music, dance and fashion clothing was never before seen on television as a popular show, it was inevitably susceptible to a lot of opposition. But in this show, many talented black dance artists were able to showcase ...

Pariah  - Dee Rees   The title of the film - the word Pariah in English means lowly person - refers to those who are not accepted by their social group, mainly because they cannot be liked, respected or trusted by people. The protagonist of the film, too, depicts the story of a young black girl of 17 years old who cannot be accepted by the social group she lives in. She experiences a lot of misunderstanding and hurt in her relationship with her family and partner. The teenager Alike eventually wants to accept everything about herself, embraces her homosexuality, and also tries to reconcile with those around her. Although in the end she still does not manage to get her mother's acceptance, she still chooses to live her life. The film is indeed a socially groundbreaking viewpoint set in a delicate and closed social environment, but under the perspective of this female director, there is a more delicate story being told about the emotional world of an ordinary individual. Differe...