Kuyamba Media has weathered the pandemic gratefully, and sometimes even gracefully. We continue to send love and solidarity to the many, many impacted by Covid-19 and the injustices it more plainly revealed. And while we believe in acknowledging loss, we are also committed to sharing and celebrating the many wins we’ve experienced since late 2020:

What’s in a Name? was a winner at PitchBlack 2021, earning a production award from Black Public Media, the PBS home of premiere documentary content about the Black experience. We have completed principal photography on the film, enduring multiple shutdowns and strategy revisions to protect our participants and crew.

Reunion Choir was selected for the inaugural Hayti Heritage Film Festival work-in-progress lab with Working Films. The focused workshopping and consultations led to an even stronger, more compelling story structure and some incredible pitch opportunities. Reunion Choir is now prepping for postproduction!

Additionally, Malkia’s handiwork as an Archival Producer and researcher was seen in feature docs by Colin Barnicle/Barnicle Brothers, Ema Ryan Yamazaki/NHK and Byron Hurt/ITVS.

Khalil_and_Malkia_GoodPitch
Khalil and Malkia just before their pitch

As fall approaches, we stay out here pushing stories of Black joy and self-sufficiency. Check out our progress:

The WHAT’S IN A NAME? team was a hit at Good Pitch Philadelphia! This September, Khalil Munir and I pitched our documentary-in-progress to a curated virtual audience of community and media industry leaders, live from PhillyCam. Good Pitch connects “the world’s best social justice films with new allies and partners.” The film follows its co-producer, performance artist Khalil Abdul Malik Raheem Munir, on and offstage as he examines his bittersweet South Philly upbringing and considers what he’s inherited from previous generations of Black men.

REUNION CHOIR wins one of six DC DOCS grants from Humanities DC! Through the lens of a stirring 2018 alumni concert that united four decades of singers, this documentary shares the history of DC’s Eastern High School Choir and Joyce Garrett, its celebrated director. Garrett used the choir’s international acclaim to build a pipeline to college for her students, who are now educators, musicians, and leaders in their own right. The DC DOCS grant from HumanitiesDC is part of the “Humanities Grant Program,” an initiative funded by the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities.

Friends,

The status quo can no longer stand. As so many of us recommit (or awaken) to this truth, and roll up our sleeves to cultivate the promise of this season, I believe we must also reckon with its pain and casualties. I’ve often compartmentalized or avoided feeling the devastation caused by the assault on Black life, the fallacy of white supremacy, state-sanctioned violence, inadequate and inequitable healthcare, and economic stratification around the globe. The COVID-19 pandemic and the recent string of video recorded murders compel me/us to be present to what we have accepted as the status quo. And in this, I find hope.

I am clear about my role as a global citizen, Black woman artist and Founding Producer at Kuyamba Media. I create authentic depictions of Black community life. Through my films, I aim to decolonize memory and imagination. To reveal, inspire and allow us to heal. In this season, I am inspired to focus in on my contribution/assignment while standing in solidarity with you as you focus on yours.

Friday, June 19 | FINDING COMMON GROUND: HOW LOCAL PUBLIC TELEVISION STATIONS AND FILMMAKERS CAN WORK TOGETHER IN A TIME OF CRISIS

The closest thing you will find to “patriotism” in me is my love for three institutions: the public library, public transportation and public television. I get to geek out about the latter of those this Friday on a panel at the online AFI DOCS film festival. If you would like to tune in, see the details here.

It’s been a minute since I’ve written you, so here is a quick list of other recent happenings at Kuyamba Media:

  • The WHAT’S IN A NAME? team has wrangled 11 years of footage into a smooth system. Whew! Khalil’s story of becoming the father he always wanted is getting closer to postproduction.
  • The REUNION CHOIR team stayed connected to our main participants while we all waited out the quarantine. Filming will resume as soon as it is safe to do so.
  • I handled archival research for Ema Ryan Yamazaki’s MASAZUMI CHAYA: KEEPER OF THE FLAME, which premiered on NHK (Japan’s national broadcaster) in commemoration of Chaya’s retirement from the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.
  • THEY SAY I’M YOUR TEACHER, a historical short from Catherine Murphy and Lucy Massie Phenix, had a great festival run. I was honored to consult on the identification and transfer of 16mm archival material.
  • I’m supporting a few additional indie docmakers as Archival Producer and Creative Producer; I’ll share more as their powerful projects reach completion.
  • My American University course (Writing the Doc) survived the transition to online classes this spring. I congratulate my students for turning out inspired work despite the disruptions!

Friend Shout Outs:

  • June 29-30, my colleagues at AND SHE COULD BE NEXT air their two-part film following gamechanging women in the 2018 election cycle. I had the honor of providing production support when they filmed in DC. (Look for the Capitol Hill scenes!)
  • Attorney and justice reform scholar Kristin Henning speaks brilliantly about the policing of Black youth – and about solutions – in this Politics and Prose talk. The entire discussion is edifying, but you can hone in on her remarks beginning at 14:16.
Thanks for your time. Let’s stay committed, present and hopeful.
Malkia

At the end of 2019, PBS affiliate WETA went behind the scenes of our documentary-in-progress, REUNION CHOIR. You can still watch our feature on WETA ARTS here: https://watch.weta.org/video/weta-arts-november-2019-5pjutf/ Scroll to 7:51 for our segment.

We started 2020 in production mode. In January, the Joyce Garrett Singers backed the one and only Diana Ross in her performances with the National Symphony Orchestra. Our REUNION CHOIR crew was there for the whole process, capturing this significant moment in Garrett’s career. REUNION CHOIR will chronicle Garrett’s tenure as director of the famed Eastern High School Choir, but it will also share her trajectory after retirement from teaching; she is one of the most sought after choral directors around. Garrett’s singers (including several Eastern alumni) rightly earned the Kennedy Center crowd’s rousing ovation and Ms. Ross’ kudos at each performance with her.

We kept the cameras rolling in February, our beloved Black History Month. This time we filmed in Philadelphia for WHAT’S IN A NAME?, our feature doc that is headed into postproduction. The Munir family invited us over for a send-off celebration for Baba Khalil, just before his Umrah pilgrimage to Medina and Mecca. In collaboration with Khalil (Jr.) Abdul Malik Raheem Munir, we’ve been following this multigenerational story of healing for more than a decade!

It’s wonderful to bear witness to creativity and healing; life stories and legacies. I love my job.

Peace,
Malkia

Yes, I screen grabbed this shot of Mrs. Garrett and I on WETA Arts.
Malkia & Joyce on WETA Arts. Yes, I did a screen grab.