BPAC Presents Free Screening of Blurring the Color Line
The Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers connects documentary filmmakers and their impactful work with audiences throughout the South. The Bologna Performing Arts Center (BPAC) is proud to be one of 12 selected Southern communities and the only Mississippi Screening Partner for the 2023 Spring Southern Circuit Tour! The Mississippi Delta Chinese Heritage Museum will provide light refreshments at 5pm before the film screening at 6pm.
From February through April, the BPAC will present three films free of charge to the community. Along with a screening of the film, the filmmakers are made available to the local community for workshops and discussions. The filmmakers also conduct a Q&A with audiences immediately following the film screening to discuss the film, its subject, and their work.
The second screening, Blurring the Color Line, is scheduled for March 30. Where did the Chinese sit on the bus during Jim Crow? Blurring the Color Line breaks racial barriers by going beyond the narratives of black & white. Much has been written about segregation upon Black people in the South, but nothing that discusses the social placement of Asian Americans during this time. This film invites critical conversations around today’s racial tensions by addressing a connective past.
Blurring the Color Line is inspired by Crystal Kwok’s grandmother’s story about her family’s grocery store in Augusta, Georgia. Her family grew up in a Black neighborhood and they share stories about their personal experiences that expose the problematic, racialized system.
The film decenters existing narratives and showcases perspectives from both the Chinese and Black community, opening up necessary but uncomfortable discussions between marginalized groups. Blurring the Color Lineis a step towards cross-racial solidarity by having a better understanding of the past in efforts of changing the future. Both Asian and Black groups have faced hardships and lack of representation in the media, so this film is needed now more than ever.
Blurring the Color Line has received awards including the Courage Award at DisOrient Film Festival, Mira Nair Rising Female Filmmaker Award at the Harlem International Film Festival, Best Documentary Award from JXN Film Festival, Viewers Choice Award & Best Documentary Award from Black Cat Picture Show in Augusta. W. Kamau Bell, Lisa Ling and Daniel Wu are Executive Producers and the film is supported by CAAM and NextShark. Kwok has been interviewed by The World, She Has the Mic and others featured on the film’s YouTube channel. Don’t miss the free screening Blurring the Color Line March 30.
All films will be screened in the BPAC Recital Hall at 6:00 p.m. followed by a Q&A with the filmmakers. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.bolognapac.com or contact the BPAC Ticket Office at 662-846-4626.
Southern Circuit screenings are funded in part by a grant from South Arts, a regional arts organization, in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information about Southern Circuit and South Arts please visit http://www.southarts.org/southerncircuit