n keeping with our celebration of Black art at the ‘Sco, the second installation in the Melanin Monday series will feature a Black Film Festival and subsequent discussions surrounding the films. This event is made possible with the help of the Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival, which was formed in response to the lack of representation of people of color in the Cleveland International Film Festival. As its mission, The Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival has sought to provide a platform for the presentation of Black cinematography, and hopes to establish a relationship between Oberlin’s artists and the larger community of Black filmmakers and creatives. Discussions about the films will be led by faculty from the Africana Studies Department, as well staff from the Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival.

Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival:
The Greater Cleveland Urban Film Festival was created with the artistic vision to present and expose the work of emerging talents and established artists who are contributing to the cinematic legacy as well as celebrating urban culture. GCUFF showcases minority films, which reinforces positive images and dispel negative stereotypes. The film festival provides a forum for the work of diverse filmmakers to be viewed and discussed. In addition to its cinematic showcases, GCUFF nurtures its attendees in a variety of disciplines, offering panel discussions, workshops and symposiums. A portion of the film festival is dedicated to Greater Cleveland area youth by showcasing films and panel discussions that allow them to learn the craft and respond to the film subject manner in a healthy, confident and empowered manner.