Episode Details

In this episode, we partner with Black Public Media (BPM) to spotlight storytellers shaping independent filmmaking. For nearly 50 years, BPM has supported creators through funding and distribution, ensuring public media reflects the global Black experience. Working with partners like PBS and now CUNY TV, BPM helps ensure public media reflects the global Black experience through documentary, narrative, and short films.

Host Leslie Fields-Cruz leads a conversation with filmmakers Sophia Clark, Divad Durant, and Tracii McGregor about their journeys, the power of storytelling, and knowing when to make the cut.

Chapters
00:00 Meet our Filmmakers
02:31 Micro Docs | Gender Identity in Everyday Life
08:06 Poetry Meets Doc Filmmaking | Maple Syrup and Mass Incarceration
13:34 The Art of the Cut | Elderly and Homeless in Los Angeles
19:44 What is Black Public Media?

Meet the Guests
Host Leslie Fields-Cruz is the Executive Director of Black Public Media. She has launched key initiatives like the 360 Incubator+ and PitchBLACK and is the creator of the award-winning anthology series AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange, now in its 14th season.

Sophia Clark is a NY Emmy award winning producer and director for a range of acclaimed productions, including Channel Thirteen’s Treasures of New York, Hulu’s Memes and Nightmares, ESPN+’s Stewart 27, and PBS Digital Studios.

Divad Durant is a screenwriter, cultural organizer, documentary filmmaker, and NYC firefighter with a deep commitment to community organizing efforts. He has produced short documentaries to support community organizing campaigns and worked as a teaching artist, facilitating media literacy and media production workshops for NYC youth.

Tracii McGregor is a journalist, pioneering hip-hop media executive, filmmaker, scholar, cultural commentator, and sought-after coach. She is the founder of 8 Million Stories, a multi-platform nonfiction production company that amplifies underrepresented voices through documentary and oral history, reflecting her lifelong passion for storytelling and culture.

Featured Films
Enjoy this conversation on the power of storytelling, knowing when to make the cut, and more. Afterward, stay for a special selection of films supported by BPM, including For the Moon, Spare Me, Dressed Like Kings, Smile4Kime, Sweet Samara, Be Heard: I Am Who I Say I Am, The Forgotten Ones, Lakeside's Treasure, The Aunties, and Mama Gloria.

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