Raleigh Film Underground Presents “The Rebirth of Protest Cinema”, an art exhibit + film screening of the 2002 cult classic “As an Act of Protest”.
•Doors open at 7PM
•Q&A with Director Dennis Leroy Kangalee at 7:30
•Followed by a live performance by Kangalee
•Film starts at 8:15 (approximately)
•Raffle prizes awarded during the event.
•New artworks created for the film screening by:
William Paul Thomas
Maximillian Monzingo
Wolly V
Marcus Kiser
•Tickets are $10 both at the door and through eventbrite link and 100% of sales go toward remastering this cult classic, which can’t be re-released to theaters in its current state. We believe the message needs to be heard.
Synopsis:
Cairo Medina, a young African American actor, goes through a station-of-the-cross journey to find the meaning of his life and eradicate the racism and police brutality that continue to plague the world. “As an Act of Protest” is an internal “Battle of Algiers”. It is a cinematic poem about racism and its psychological effects. It is an avant-garde movie that is more like a classical theater piece rather than a foray into conventional narrative cinema, and its style flows from documentary and melodrama to satire and horror.
From Producer Christopher Everett, who directed the acclaimed “Wilmington on Fire’ and is behind this effort to bring back “As An Act of Protest”:
“Join us for this fundraising event. It is our intention to screen this ‘independent gem’ in its current state while attracting people who want to help enable a restored version of the movie. Sound, pixelation issues — these are all some of the minor problems that need to be resolved due to the movie’s degraded image as a result of all the transfers not having been made from the initial master tape/edit, which was unfortunately lost overseas in 2004.
To retain the integrity and aesthetic proclivities of its creator, the goal is not to make a miracle out of the footage by making
it “cleaner,” but simply enhancing its resolution, refreshing the sound mix where possible, and creating suitable credits/titles
for this new 2017 release.
Movies come and go, very few are as edifying and vital as As an Act of Protest — which should claim its rightful place
alongside other American cult classics, such as “Spook Who Sat By The Door,” “Ice,” “Sweet Sweetback’s Badasss Song,”
and “Killer of Sheep,” for example.
It is unfortunate that the Black independent filmmakers, particularly, those making ‘protest cinema’ or ‘political films’ should
be maligned in their attempt to bring their voices to audiences who crave alternative visions of our world in cinema.
By raising funds, we plan to re-ignite the campaign for a new Protest Cinema by re-releasing As an Act of Protest on DVD
and in theaters.”
