The 26th Annual Pan African Film & Arts Festival (PAFF) returned to Los Angeles from February 8-19.
On February 9, filmmakers with projects in this year’s PAFF attended a brunch at DGA headquarters. Following a welcome from DGA Field Rep Gabe Kahsay, and festival tips from PAFF Executive Director Ayuko Babu, the attendees heard DGA Director-members Danny Glover (Just a Dream), Louis Gossett Jr. (Love Songs) and Glynn R. Turman (Fly) speak about the advantages of Guild membership and African American Steering Committee (AASC) member Abdul Malik Abbott (Balance of Power) speak about the work of the Committee. Then the filmmakers got to introduce themselves and their projects and mingle with the DGA members attending the event that included Director Fay Hauser-Price (A Gift of Song) and Assistant Director Redelia Shaw (Queen Sugar) who are members of the AASC, as well as 2016 DGA First-Time Feature Award nominee Nate Parker (The Birth of a Nation).
About the Festival
Dedicated to promoting racial tolerance through the exhibition of film, art and creative expression, PAFF presents films and the works of fine artists and craft persons to showcase the diversity and complexity of people of African descent from the United States, Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, South America, Europe, the South Pacific and Canada. The DGA has served as a sponsor of the festival for more than a decade. For more information about PAFF visit their website at http://www.paff.org.
About the AASC
The African American Steering Committee (AASC) was born of a desire to address the specific needs of the African-American members of the Directors Guild. One of the primary goals of the Committee is to establish a productive line of communication between African-American members and the creative community.