The Absurdity of The Black Female Experience
Director: Vanessa Magic
WINNER: Audience Award
Cast:Shanice Bowrin, Ella Cooper
Crew:Writer: Vanessa Magic, Producer: Shonna Foster, Associate Producer: Nedda Sarshar, Director of Photography: Rolla Tahir, Editor: Nicole Sison, Production Designer: Dawn Grant, Costume Designer: Kaylah Wilson, Makeup Artist: Temi Shobowale, Composer & Sound Designer: Jeremy Glenn
Email:vanessaismagic@gmail.com
Synopsis
A Black woman journeys through a guided meditation in an effort to connect with herself and decide whether she will go towards the light of hope or remain in the darkness of a constructed reality.
Trailer
About the director
Vanessa Magic is a Canadian Screen-nominated director and award-winning writer, whose work centers around loneliness and grief, often from the eye of the outsider. Vanessa's passion is creating stories highlighting Black female protagonists and leaving the viewer learning something new and maybe unexpected. Inspired by her dreams, she is eager to create worlds and narratives untold, unseen and filled with magic. Her short films include The Future Above Us (2023), The Absurdity of the Black Female Experience (2023) and Oneironautic (2022)
Filmmaker's note
The Absurdity of The Black Female Experience aims to shed light on the complex and nuanced experiences of Black women through a surrealist lens, capturing the strange and highlighting it with levity and light. In a world that creates self-doubt and shame surrounding the identity of Black women and presents challenges of living up to the trope of being a “strong“ Black woman, this piece aims to encourage self-care and self-preservation of Black women and create a greater understanding and empathy.