Firelight Media x BlackStar Film Festival 2025
Join us July 31 through August 3 in Philadelphia for screenings, panels, and parties! Select screenings will also be available online worldwide.
Firelight Media is thrilled to return as a sponsor of this year’s BlackStar Film Festival, a one-of-a-kind celebration of Black, Brown, and Indigenous filmmaking. The festival will take place in Philadelphia and online from July 31 through August 3, 2025.
Join Firelight Media-supported filmmakers for screenings throughout the festival, Co-Founders Marcia Smith and Stanley Nelson at panel discussions, and Firelight Media’s new President and CEO Loira Limbal and other staff members at the Filmmaker Mixer. A preview of these events may be found below, and full details—including showtimes, locations, tickets, and passes—may be found at blackstarfest.org/festival.
August 1, 11:30 am | The Shadow Scholars, dir. Eloise King
On Friday, August 1 at 11:30 am, filmmaker Eloise King will screen her Documentary Lab-supported film The Shadow Scholars.
Tens of thousands of young and well-educated Kenyans are hired online by undergraduates and doctoral students at Western universities to write their essays and theses in a multibillion-dollar underground industry. Oxford professor Patricia Kingori embarks on a search for these “shadow scholars.”
August 1, 5:00 pm | Seeds, dir. Brittany Shyne
On Friday, August 1 at 5:00 pm, filmmaker Brittany Shyne will screen her Documentary Lab-supported film Seeds.
Seeds is a portrait of centennial farmers in the American South. Using lyrical black-and-white imagery, this meditative film examines the decline of generational Black farmers and the significance of owning land.
August 1, 5:30 pm | Beyond Resilience: Black Media Legacy Panel, feat. Marcia Smith
On Friday, August 1 at 5:30 pm, Firelight Media Co-Founder Marcia Smith will join Louis Massiah and BlackStar’s Chief Executive & Artistic Officer Maori Karmael Holmes for a panel on Black Media Legacy, co-presented by Firelight Media’s Beyond Resilience series.
Legacy is more than just remembrance — it’s a living, evolving force that continues to shape the future. This panel explores the lasting impact of pioneering Black filmmakers, storytellers and cultural workers, including William Greaves and Toni Cade Bambara, whose works and ideas continue to inspire new generations. Firelight Media’s co-founder Marcia Smith reflects on 25 years of championing BIPOC filmmakers and the role institutions play in shaping artistic legacies. Meanwhile, filmmaker Louis Massiah, founder of Scribe Video Center, discusses his latest work on Toni Cade Bambara and how her powerful storytelling remains vital today. Together, these changemakers will examine what it means to build, protect and carry forward a Black artistic legacy.
August 1, 6:00 pm | Third Act, dir. Tadashi Nakamura
On Friday, August 1 at 6:00 pm, filmmaker Tad Nakamura will screen his Documentary Lab-supported film Third Act.
Generations of artists call Robert A. Nakamura “the godfather of Asian American media,” but filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura calls him Dad. What begins as a documentary about his father’s career takes a turn with a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis and evolves into an exploration on art, activism, grief, and fatherhood.
August 1, 9:30 pm | WE WANT THE FUNK!, dirs. Stanley Nelson & Nicole London
On Friday, August 1 at 9:30 pm, Firelight Media Co-Founder and Lead Mentor Stanley Nelson and Co-Director Nicole London will screen their Firelight Films-produced documentary WE WANT THE FUNK!
We Want the Funk! is a syncopated voyage through the history of funk music, spanning from African, soul and early jazz roots to its rise into the public consciousness. Featuring James Brown’s dynamism, the extraterrestrial funk of George Clinton’s Parliament Funkadelic, transformed girl group Labelle and Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat, the story also traces funk’s influences on both new wave and hip-hop.
August 2, 2:00 pm | Sun Ra: Do the Impossible, dir. Christine Turner
On Saturday, August 2 at 2:00 pm, Firelight Media Documentary Lab alum Christine Turner will screen her Firelight Films-produced documentary Sun Ra: Do the Impossible.
Sun Ra: Do the Impossible is a kaleidoscopic portrait of the visionary jazz musician, composer, and poet known as Sun Ra and the musical, historical, and philosophical currents that shaped him.
August 2, 5:30 pm | Beyond Resilience: Black Music as Resistance Panel, feat. Stanley Nelson & Christine Turner
With Stanley Nelson (WE WANT THE FUNK!), Christine Turner (Sun Ra: Do the Impossible), Elegance Bratton (Move Ya Body: The Birth of House), and Joseph Patel (Sly Lives! aka the Burden of Black Genius); moderated by DJ Lynnée Denise.
Black music has always been a tool of resistance — pushing against societal norms, reshaping cultural expectations, and amplifying the voices of those demanding change. This panel explores the deep connection between Black musical innovation and acts of defiance, from funk’s rejection of rigid structures in the 1960s and 1970s to Sun Ra’s refusal to be confined by genre. Along the way, we’ll examine films that capture funk’s political power and cultural legacy, revealing how cinema has helped preserve and amplify its revolutionary spirit. Join us for a powerful conversation on how Black artists have challenged limitations and, in doing so, created timeless movements of sonic and social revolution.
August 2, 7:00 pm | Filmmaker Mixer, Co-Sponsored by Firelight Media
Firelight Media is proud to be a co-sponsor of the BlackStar Filmmaker Mixer, along with Black Public Media, ITVS, and WORLD Channel, with additional support from Twenty43. This event is only open to Filmmaker and Industry pass holders, as well as select sponsors.
Our President & CEO Loira Limbal and Co-Founders Marcia Smith and Stanley Nelson will be in attendance.
August 3, 6:30 pm | Correct Me If I’m Wrong (如你所愿 / Ru ni suo yuan), dir. Hao Zhou
On Sunday, August 3 at 6:30 pm, Firelight Media-supported filmmaker Hao Zhou will screen his documentary short film Correct Me If I’m Wrong (如你所愿 / Ru ni suo yuan) as part of the Wellspring Shorts Program.
A filmmaker undergoes a series of home remedies and spiritual rituals as their family attempts to purge their gender-nonconforming identity. Caught in a struggle of love, legacy and belief, this Southwest Chinese family seeks to rid their queer heir of what they perceive as an unwanted entity. Content Warning: Homophobia.
Learn more about BlackStar Film Festival and get tickets and passes by visiting blackstarfest.org/festival.
Learn more about Firelight Media and our programs by visiting firelightmedia.tv.
