Music star, songwriter, actress, producer, and powerful champion of women in film, Queen Latifah, is back with year two of her Queen Collective. An initiative, not only dedicated to allowing multi-cultural women to showcase their films, but also display the value of diversity in filmmaking.
Queen's Initiative
Queen Collective, which begins its second year Saturday, June 13, was started by Queen Latifah alongside her producing partner Shakim Compere, and support from Tribeca Studios and Proctor & Gamble. Simple in theory, but impressive in scope, the collective strives to promote gender and racial equality by locating several women of color involved in filmmaking, provide them with a full-length production course and funding for their short films.
Latifah has said of the project, that she wants to, "give people opportunities to create careers...and make this playing field a little more even."
These short films premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival before finding homes on various platforms, last years If There Is Light, and Ballet After Dark are available exclusively on Hulu.
Year 2
Receiving 60 applicants in its first year, the number of applicants doubled according to Variety for its 2020 run. Nadine Natour, Ugonna Okpalaoka, and Sam Knowles, pictured above from left to right, were personally selected by Queen Latifah and her partners. The three directors were given access to industry professionals, production support, mentors, and distributors. While we have no word on what goes into the selection process, Latifah had previously mentioned that when it comes to selecting films that she wants to be a part of, she has to "feel it in my bones... feel it in my heart... I have to feel like this is the right project..."
The two films for their part, tackle different experiences, yet resonate in the same sphere of race, timeliness, and navigating a complicated, oppressive system. Knowles documentary, Tangled Roots, focuses on hair discrimination against people of color, through the eyes of Kentucky State representative Attica Scott as she fights against a discriminatory hair bill. Okpalaoka and Natour's film Gloves Off follows Tiara Brown, a police officer in D.C. who spends her nights as a boxer. The film will tackle race, and gender politics as she recounts her story of being a woman of color in two male-dominated arenas.
Looking Forward
Haley Elizabeth Anderson and B. Monét, the directors whose films were selected in year one, have gone on to hire diverse cast and crew, and ensure their teams are comprised equally and sometimes predominately of women. They also returned to the collective as mentors for this year's group of directors. With its support growing, and continual investment in female artists, these women will continue to redefine what it looks like to be successful in Hollywood.
