Projects I’m Supporting, Part Eight
It’s Black Speculative Fiction Month and I wanted to highlight some of the projects I’m supporting this month! Read More
Uncategorized
Projects I’m Supporting, Part Seven
I got burned on supporting Universal Fan Con (if you didn’t already know, the convention didn’t happen…long story) and while it slowed down my support of indie projects, it hasn’t completely stopped me. So here’s what I’ve donated to over the last couple of months. Read More
A Brand New Funk: Biofunk comes to Afrofuturism!
Hmmm….this sounds interesting!
It all started withSteamfunk– a style of writing and visual aesthetic that combines the culture and approach to life of people of African descent with that of the Steampunk aesthetic.
Next cameDieselfunk – fiction, film and fashion that combine the style and mood of Dieselpunk – Steampunk’s grittier sibling – with African and African-American inspiration. It is a name I came up with in 2012, playing off of Steamfunk.
Dieselfunk tells the exciting untold stories of people of African descent during the Jazz Age.
Think the Harlem Renaissance meets Science Fiction; think Chalky White (from Boardwalk Empire) doing battle with robots run amok in his territory; think Mob bosses, Nazis, the Tuskegee Airmen, the Tulsa Race Riots and jazz… thatis Dieselfunk.
Then cameRococoa– the Age of Spring Technology and Clockwork.
Think Science Fiction and Fantasy meet Three Finger’d Jack, the pirate, Black Caesar…
View original post 622 more words
Projects I’m Supporting, Part Six
Happy spring (or “Happy second winter,” depending on your location)! I’m closing out the first quarter of 2018 off strong with new crowdfunding projects I’m supporting. Here’s the latest round! Read More
I Got Five On It: Marvel’s Black Panther
Thoughts on Black Panther from Troy Wiggins!
fan-made poster by Argentinian artist Federico Ariel.
For those unfamiliar, The “I Got Five on It” series consists of posts where I give my five thoughts–right or wrong—on a book, graphic novel/comic, film, or TV show. This is a very off the dome, stream of consciousness type of analysis and NOT a review. At its worst, it can be categorized as a Hot Take, but it’s really just a collection of the things I bang with–and don’t bang with–about a media property that is of import to me and the culture.
(also, and I can’t believe I never actually said this, “I Got Five On It” is both the title of this series and a twenty something year old rap song from West Coast rap duo Luniz. It’s probably their most well known cut.)
What a time to be a Wakandan. Marvel’s Black Panther, the eighteenth film set…
View original post 2,496 more words
Projects I’m Supporting, Part Five
So it’s the end of the year but there are still plenty of crowdfunding projects out there that need your support. Here’s the latest round of projects I’ve supported. Read More
Ki Khanga: The Sword and Soul Role Playing Game is now available!
Midwest BFSA is getting a group together to play Ki Khanga in the next couple of months. We’ll let you know when you get this scheduled!
Ki Khanga: The Sword and Soul Role Playing Game, by Balogun Ojetade and Milton Davis, puts you in the role of a character of your liking in a world of mystery and magic; of villainy and victory; of sword… and soul.
Will you delve for lost artifacts in the ruins of ancient temples? Strap on beaded armor and an nkisi necklace to battle undead legions as they storm your city upon the backs of skeletal camels, or defend your village from a swarm of ravenous impundulu? Whether you’re making your way through the magical forests of Wandatu or fighting to survive in the palm oil-lit back alleys of Sati-Baa, you and your team will need all your wits, combat skill, and magic to make it through. But most of all, you’ll need each other.
This rulebook is the essential centerpiece of Ki Khanga: The Sword and Soul Role Playing Game
View original post 166 more words
HAPPY BLACK SPECULATIVE FICTION MONTH!
Let’s go back in the Way Back Machine to the moment Balogun Ojetade and Milton Davis introduced us to Black Speculative Fiction Month! Happy anniversary!
HAPPY BLACK SPECULATIVE FICTION MONTH!
In early June of 2013, author Milton Davis and I had a discussion – as we often do – about the importance of Black people reading, writing and watching Science Fiction and Fantasy and the Black authors, artists and filmmakers currently creating in these genres.
The conversation shifted to the various fan conventions we attend and the fact that the fastest growing demographic at these conventions is Black people. We became optimistic about this year’s Alien Encounters celebration and the audience that it is sure to draw. We also talked about how Alien Encounters is going national, with celebrations in the DC / Maryland / Virginia area, Philadelphia and even as far as California.
At some point, we began to kick around the idea of Black Speculative Fiction Month. Since Alien Encounters takes place in October, it made sense that Black Speculative Fiction month…
View original post 881 more words
The Wars of Other Men’s Scott Norman
So it took a liiiittle bit longer than expected, but The Wars of Other Men is out on DVD now! Go buy it on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/The-Wars-of-Other-Men/dp/B071G7MVDL) and revisit our interview with the lead actor Scott Norman!
The steampunk/dieselpunk tale The Wars of Other Men comes out on DVD this month. We talked with Scott Norman, who plays the film’s nameless main character, about the life of an actor, being a black geek/nerd and “steaselpunk” (TM Scott Norman).
View original post 1,104 more words
Okwui Okpokwasili on Bronx Gothic
If you’re in or near New York City, Okwui Okpokwasili’s Bronx Gothic is the subject of a documentary film of the same name by Andrew Rossi and is having a two week run at Film Forum (209 W. Houston St., New York, NY 10014) from Wednesday, July 12, through Tuesday, July 25, 2017.
A description from the the New York Times:
“The film follows Ms. Okpokwasili as she prepares for her final performance of the work not far from her childhood home. Mr. Rossi honors the fullness of her live performances, showing long stretches intact, while illuminating the relationships, in particular between daughters and mothers, that orbit her process.”Check out the interview we did with Okwui when she brought Bronx Gothic to the Contemporary Arts Center last year.
New York artist Okwui Okpokwasili brings her one-woman show, Bronx Gothic, to the Contemporary Arts Center this week. Midwest BSFA talked to the writer/choreographer about combining elements of the Victorian Gothic and West African storytelling, and exploring the concepts of darkness and innocence in her work.
View original post 1,490 more words
