Shruti Mehra
Canadian entertainment company Cineplex is offering free online access to over 40 movies featuring Black filmmakers and actors.
The collection is titled “Understanding Black Stories” and it includes movies Just Mercy, Get Out, The Hate U Give and I Am Not Your Negro.
Cineplex, on its website, that the collection was “curated to elevate Black stories, artists and filmmakers and spark discussion.” All the movies in the collection can be watched for free on Cineplex’s site.
“These movies have the potential to change the perspective of people about the community.” said Norman Wilner, senior film writer at NOW Toronto.
The Criterion Channel has also curated a list of movies by Black creators to stream free on its online platform.
Wilner said these channels and online platforms had taken this step to stand in solidarity with anti-Black racism protests around the world.
“These movies offer a very clear image and depiction of what the Black experience has been in America and around the world.” Wilner said.
Sonny Nightingale, a cinema specialist at the University of Toronto, said the offers are an effort to explore and to help audiences understand the beauty of a real cinematic experience.
“This has nothing to do with a community or people belonging to a specific colour,” he said.
Cineplex participated in #BlackOutTuesday across all its social media platforms on June 2 and vowed to continue its support to anti-black racism protests.
Below is a timeline of movies that depicts the lives of the black community, their position in the society and how they uncover individual experiences dealing with issues like racial discrimination and exploitation.