It took decades for Black directors to break into the industry and alter how Hollywood operated behind and in front of the camera and how it viewed Black content. Oscar Micheaux led the charge, launching his own studio in 1919.
Directors such as Melvin van Peebles and Gordon Parks put Black narratives at the forefront of their storytelling in the 1970s, creating a subgenre known as “blaxploitation.” These films used Black stereotypes about poverty and drug abuse to put Black actors at the center of the action.
Then in the ’80s and ’90s, Spike Lee and John Singleton used their films to examine urban and racial tensions, providing a mainstream audience with more nuanced Black characters. Game Changers>>
