theBlaakRthefilmmaker @BlaakRichardson Twitter profile

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

4 years

Really am proud of this little piece we created for last nights Trumpet awards. I hope Ms. Angelou would have approved ✊🏽🖤. #Blackart #Blackcreativity #BlackGirlMagic #Blackdirector #Blackproducers

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

My mum passed this morning after a long battle with cancer. She died with her lipstick on and a 30 day Facebook ban for calling out a racist Trump supporter. I couldn’t be prouder of her and the life she lived to the absolute fullest. ✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

7 years

Yesssss when Martin and Andy are the diversity hires ✊🏾👊🏾💪🏾❤️ #BlackPanther

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

@YNB Our taxes pay for every rubber bullet and flash bang also. So what’s your point????

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 months

When a yt BBC drama producer told me and my co writer (also Black) that our Black characters weren’t authentically Black enough and she knew this because she lived in Brixton…

Revamped | Career & Workplace Development

@RevampedCP

5 months

What experience in the workplace radicalized you?

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Racism in the Uk film & tv industry has destroyed so many lives. Forced so much Black & NBPOC talent out of the industry (or in my case out of the country). That’s why this current round of faux handwringing by those who have been complicit in our exclusion feels so disingenuous.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

A big shout out to all my fellow Black Brits who are literally biting through their tongues at the moment as the yt folks discuss their hot takes on dealing with the Uk police. Your patience is duly noted and appreciated. 🙏🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Its a minor point, surely exacerbated by the titles, but I can’t help but notice the subtle irony surrounding the prime time slot @Channel4 gave to ‘Jews don’t count’ and the extremely late night one they gave to the recent Judi Love documentary ‘Black, female and invisible. 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

26 days

A well known Black British creative pondered to me yesterday “How many Black filmmakers have pitched stories about Black people/families only to be dismissed with ‘why now? or what’s the hook?”…We🖤Mike but it’s also very clear who the uk industry allows to tell our stories🤷🏽‍♂️

Bleecker Street

@bleeckerstfilms

27 days

For the first time since their award-winning "Secrets & Lies," legendary filmmaker Mike Leigh and Oscar-nominated actress Marianne Jean-Baptiste reunite for HARD TRUTHS, a compassionate story about family and the thorny ties that bind us. Coming soon to theaters. #HardTruths

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

…To Sir, with all our love…✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

As I have more and more meetings with UK television executives, the common thread seems to be that they still see diversity as a ‘problem’ that needs to be ‘overcome’ instead of the solution that needs to be embraced.....🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 months

We’ve allowed a v. small group of incredibly privileged middle class yt folks run the uk industry whose only qualifications are attending the ‘right school’or being grandfathered in. It’s no surprise that it’s so exclusive & also collapsing beneath the weight of their mediocrity.

Channel 4 News

@Channel4News

5 months

New research exclusively seen by Channel 4 News shows just 1 in 12 creatives working in TV and Film in England, Wales and Northern Ireland are from working class backgrounds. Actor Samira Ahmed says her experience of drama school made her realise "you need connections".

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

Hearing Prof Benjamin Zephaniah has passed has broken me. His poetry profoundly affected me growing up. So when he agreed to be in the first film I ever wrote I was beyond humbled. Appropriately he played my ideal of Black fatherhood. I am forever grateful. Rest easy dred ✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

It’s weird how the U.K. industry refuses to let Black British film makers progress past the ‘short film’ stage of their careers regardless of experience. Last year it was Windrush short films this year BLM short films, it’s very, very telling. But congrats I guess 🤷🏽‍♂️

Stop The World I Want To Get Off

@CampbellX

4 years

ITV commissions dramas inspired by #BlackLivesMatter movement from Greenacre Films run by legendary Black British producer @nadme2 via @thelistmagazine

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

And yet the uk industry still out here calling Black led projects ‘niche’ with their whole chest 😂😂😂

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@_niaspeaks

1 year

The #1 and #2 movies at the box office this weekend is a Black Mermaid🧜🏾‍♀️ and a Black Spiderman🕷️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

6 years

@Freeyourmindkid Shooting Nicki Minaj pink print footage for BET, NYPD order me out of designated area, ignore my credentials, call me a MF & threaten arrest, leaving white camera op 2 feet away untouched, I was camera ops boss, I was the director & it was my birthday - making a #LivingWhileBlack

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Never ever seen this picture before. Bob Marley and the Jackson 5 in Jamaica 🖤✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

After 6 months back in the uk, my advice - if you are a young Black British creative - get the fuck out as quickly as possible. I guarantee the rest of the world will be excited by your talent and creativity, but the uk industry has little interest in you. I’m so sorry. 🥲

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

So excited to have signed the dotted line on our 6 part Afro futuristic police procedural centered around a dark skinned Black matriarchal society in “Cornwall”. Huge thanks to @Channel4 & our sister @CarolineHollick for believing in Black British stories,creatives & indies. ✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

The Royal family about to get a diversity department and start some training schemes. I can feel it. 😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

1) Hearing the great Horace Ove has passed has left me heartbroken.A true pioneer& inspiration. Always so generous with his time & sly advice when I was coming up. 🙏🏽The godfathers of Black British film have gone & the uk industry has done its best to marginalize their successors

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 month

🧵I’ll tell you how the uk industry treats working class people. 29 years ago a group of us Black & Yt working class folks started the country’s first inclusive weekly screenplay reading night ‘OFF THE GROVE’ funded pretty much on my credit card. A truly diverse endeavor before

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

People still ask me why I was forced to leave the UK - well on my current US show - My network exec is Black, EP is Black, Producers are Black, writers are Black, Dp’s are Black, talent booker is Black, licensing is white, post Supe is Black, Majority women... meanwhile in Uk...

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 months

Feels great not voting for the genocidal, morally corrupt, anti Black, anti Muslim, anti Trans, racist bigots …or the tories.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

This is so exciting and really shows just how committed to diversity the @bbc is. So lovely to see all hair colors fully represented. It truly is a new inclusive dawn 😂😂😂😂

BBC names new drama commissioners - Televisual

The BBC has announced three new assistant drama commissioners as well as the next Drama Room Writers.

www.televisual.com

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

The @BBC letting us believe #TheRealMcCoy master tapes had been destroyed, so it couldn’t be aired for two decades is soooo @BBC , good one, you got us!!!...All this time we thought it was racism and it was just high jinx... well I’m certainly embarrassed. Bloomin’ Scallywags.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Lordt! @bbc WE NEED REAL PERMANENT STRUCTURAL CHANGE, heads of department, commissioners with green light capability, black led production companies, directors, writers, crews, producers etc. Not ‘diversity fairs’ 🙄

Variety_TV

@Variety_TV

4 years

Michaela Coel, Cynthia Erivo to Headline BBC Creative Diversity Initiative

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 months

The fact that so many yt tv execs seem genuinely shocked at #supacell ’s success shows the utter state the uk industry is in. Can you just imagine how healthy and exciting uk tv could’ve been if it hadn’t been so darn committed to its precious racism, classism & nepotism

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

He was a King. His words helped me find myself, my identity. Words truly are power and his were full. Sending all my love to his family and friends and to all who are now left with a space in our hearts. Rest easy professor and thank you 🖤✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 years

Every time @sharrond62 tweets, I’m reminded of my white grandparents who loved me dearly, but happily voted for the National Front 🤷🏽‍♂️

Sharron Davies MBE

@sharrond62

5 years

I had 20 years of racing drug fuelled DDR athletes with the IOC doing nothing. White neo nazis sending postal bombs & black woman sucking their teeth & spitting because I STOLE a black man (I put him in my hand bag & ran off) twitters a walk in the park. ‘Silence is compliance’

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 months

My heart goes out to @itv staff of colour, In fact to all the staff of colour at uk broadcasters who thanks to uk industry culture, will now be ‘expected’ to defend, downplay or at the very least remain ‘respectably’ silent about behavior like this from their colleagues…😞

Nadine White.

@Nadine_Writes

2 months

. @zarahsultana , a Muslim MP, says UK race riots should rightly be called racist and Islamophobic. Ed Balls, husband of the Home Secretary, sneers at her. White commentators with no lived experience of racism have a good laugh seemingly at Zarah's expense.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

11 months

Soooooo now the strikes are over are we allowed to admit that thanks to decades of classism, nepotism, systemic racism, misogyny, ableism & general lack of any innovation the uk doesn’t have a homegrown film & television industry & is just a us production hub?…or nah 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Both @bbc & @Channel4 using their ‘commitment to diversity’ statements in response to recent hostile work environment claims, shows they’re clearly ignoring the specificity of Anti Blackness. So a quick reminder - your network can be both technically diverse & still anti Black.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 years

@hallmarkchannel @mattcohen4real @britbristow Always suspected @hallmarkchannel were bigots. Now it’s confirmed.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Dealing with Uk broadcasters for first time in 15 yrs (announcing soon) The thing that stands out most between the Uk & US, is the underlying negativity when discussing anything Black centered. Uk execs still think Inclusion is charity instead of the future of our industry 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

7 years

Shoot with @ava today, probably one of the most uplifting and inspirational 30 mins I’ve spent in the longest of times. Thank you and great work ABFF team. :) trust me, this famously grumpy Brit was beaming ear to ear under my hat. ✊🏽👏🏽😊

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 years

I see the uk industry is getting so much better re: diversity. All shades of white people repped from blond all the way to ginger. #dofuckingbetter #theyaintevenembarressed

Line of Duty

@Line_of_duty

5 years

Who else is really not ready for #LineOfDuty to be over? Head to our Facebook & Insta stories now to make sure you're fully up to date ahead of Sunday's final episode. Meanwhile, let's take a moment to thank the brilliant Line of Duty team, both in front and behind the camera.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 months

Yes what we’ve actually been seeing over the last few years are the remnants of black square summer. But don’t be fooled, the rate at which uk broadcasters are shelving, cancelling & discouraging new Black projects is wild. That’s why it’s so important to support these shows 🤷🏽‍♂️

Alex Kayode-Kay

@alexk_kay

3 months

We been done dirty by the powers that be for decades,so we're hyper-critical,but now we at least have serious black British creatives bringing varied perspectives.I'm thankful for #Queenie .For #Dreamingwhilstblack .For #Boarders & I'm 100% thankful for @RealRapman & #Supacell

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

This year really has been the absolute worst.😔 Rest Easy 🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 month

7) fake concern because if they really gave a shit the solution has always been right there…ps. I’m bringing OFF THE GROVE back next year for our 30th anniversary. So I guess we’ll see how serious the usual suspects are about Class and Race & creating a fairer inclusive industry

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Nothing says ‘we here at @bbc are committed to diversity’ more than half your execs just not turning up to a meeting with the heads of the uk’s top Black and NBPOC indies. 😂🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

I don’t want to ever hear any yt Uk industry exec ever say ‘they can’t find the Black British Talent’ again. Yes I was disappointed that #BlacktoFront didn’t go as far as I would have liked, but I think big! But the truth is @Channel4 shamed all the other Uk networks today.👏🏽✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

The Royal Family 1066-2021 😂😂😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

The US: Insecure, Atlanta, Swarm,Watchmen,I’m a Virgo, Love craft country, The Chi, Bel Air , Raising Dion, Abbot Elementary, Black-ish, Pose, P- valley… The UK: Rufus Jones has written Forty Acres, a Sky comedy drama about historic slavery led by Hugh Bonneville. 😂😂😂😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Reminds me of when me& Kolton lee met with Jane Tranter head of @BBC Drama at the time & she told us she didn’t know much about Black culture, so she couldn’t tell whether something was ‘good Black writing’ or not...and that’s why they didn’t commission black work. fun times kids

Frederick Joseph

@FredTJoseph

4 years

We discuss the disparities in pay and resources for Black and brown storytellers and artists. But what we don't discuss enough is the fact that most white gatekeepers simply don't understand non-white narratives and artistry. But they still own most of the access.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 months

It’s not lost on me that the uk’s most creatively ambitious Black show to date was commissioned by a us based streamer. As uk network tv drama stews in its monochromatic middle class mediocrity it’s great to see @netflix backing new BB talent both behind and in-front of camera✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

A ‘comedy about historic slavery’ being commissioned, as projects from Black British creatives are being cancelled at an alarming rate & the tiny advances made during black square summer systematically reversed, feels particularly cruel and vindictive even for the uk industry😔

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

One of my least favorite things about being back in the uk industry is feeling like I have to constantly ‘mention’ the 100’s of hours of TV I’ve created, to counter the propensity for uk execs to see even the most experienced Black producers as fresh off a training scheme 😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

The problem is the uk industry is largely a white, middle class, ableist bubble with no real connection to their audience. It’s insular nature means that new ideas rarely penetrate & most commissions are based on what they laugh about over a Chardonnay, for example - slavery.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

The biggest shock for me coming back to the uk industry from the us is just how many supposedly Black/NBPOC projects are being helmed/directed by yt middle class directors. And absolutely no one thinks it odd!? I guess they remain the true beneficiaries of Black Square summer 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

Hearing rumors that certain @bfi execs are cross checking funding applications with Twitter handles to see who has been critical of the org about their record on race. If true, that would be extremely disappointing and would set a very dangerous and damaging precedent. 😞

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

7 months

I love how strong the international response to this has been & I’m so excited for all the brilliant young BB creatives involved. A reminder that despite what yt uk execs would have us believe - we’re not ‘niche’ but part of the global majority, a market that is wide open & ready

Netflix

@netflix

7 months

When a regular group of people in South London are gifted with superpowers, they find their new abilities have made them targets for a powerful entity. Supacell, a new series created by Rapman, premieres this June.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

6 years

Look I have nothing against Anthony at all, but I do wish all the people on this list (most who are friends) had been AS publically supportive of Black filmmaker #koltonlee when he put his career on the line 2 expose the racism in the Uk creative arts. 🤷🏽‍♂️

Anthony Ekundayo Lennon’s story is not ‘black and white’ | Letters

Letters: Actors including Michaela Ewuraba Coel voice their support for the theatre director and say he has never misled anyone

www.theguardian.com

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 months

When I first arrived back from the us an @itv exec admitted to me just how badly they had messed up the marketing of #Riches , agreeing that the broadcaster had absolutely no idea how to reach a Black audience….If only the uk industry was capable of a modicum of self reflection🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

Had a Convo with a friend yesterday who said I was coming for the U.K. TV/film industry like a certain ‘T*rrorist’ group & it made me realize they’ve got us so completely messed up in the U.K. that simply demanding to be treated equally & fairly is somehow considered radical 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

Speak up & ‘You’ll never work in this town again’ has always been a very real threat for marginalized groups in Uk industry. The fact that so many Black & Asian creatives stood up publicly to the @bbc is not only a revolutionary act but an important shift in the power dynamic. ✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

6 years

This is so upsetting a prominent white business man who allegedly groomed a young black child is now claiming her as his ‘daughter’ and taking the child’s grieving mother to court over ownership of the poor girls dead body. As a parent myself this is the stuff of nightmares.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

I think @kelechnekoff may well be onto something here. The ability to be free of the constraints of ‘acceptability’ that Hollywood imposes on Black folks, combined with his abundant resources could well lead to a new level of creative freedom. I think he may indeed thrive. 🤷🏽‍♂️

Kelechi

@kelechnekoff

2 years

I have a theory that this blacklisting that Hollywood is attempting with Will might end up being one of the best things to happen to him.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 months

Hope people support #Queenie despite it being produced by a new ⚪️ former exec led indie🙄 (an opportunity never afforded Black indies) & @Channel4 fired the mixed/Black HOD who made sure it was commissioned.There’s a whole heap of Black talent involved who gave it everything🖤✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

Imma keep quiet on the @bbc thing. Cause It seems whenever this conversation comes up marginalized groups are just supposed to ignore the racism, sexism, classism & ableism that plague the very core of the corporation & root for the idea of a public broadcaster over the reality🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

As other Uk broadcasters are pushing their bloody training schemes, it’s really great to see @ch4 looking to fill senior production positions. This is how you create real change!. I really hope this approach will be long term and not just for this B2B season. But gotta say 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

The TV Collective

@TheTVCollective

4 years

Black to Front features major new commissions and reimagines some of Channel 4’s biggest mainstream shows. DEADLINE 22/03/21 More Info: #Channel4 #BlackToFront #POC #TV #Film #Diversity #Inclusion #Representation #Wales #Manchester #Leeds #London

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Big up to all the Black and NBPOC showing incredible patience on Twitter tonight in the face of yt ‘shock and disgust’ at the actions of met police. Most definitely an under appreciated act of solidarity.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

#SmallAxe drop a few hours early in the U.S & mangrove did not disappoint, a beautiful piece of work. But I can’t help but be filled with rage at the decades lost as we were told our stories were irrelevant by @bbc @itv @Channel4 . I will never forgive those pasty fucks, ever.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

Simply the best. 💔

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 months

People keep asking if I’m worried about backlash from the uk industry for being outspoken. The truth is if you’re Black or NBPOC theres gonna be backlash however you act. So I’d rather be treated like shit for telling the truth than keeping my mouth shut & being shat on anyway🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

I was 28 when I got my first Uk tv writing job...then I spoke out against industry racism... I was 37 before my next...🤷🏽‍♂️

Matthew A. Cherry

@MatthewACherry

4 years

I was 36 when I got my first TV directing job.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Weird to be back in the uk contemplating & contrasting how Black creatives are treated in the uk and us. But with a handful of progressive uk network execs & a shitload of Black British talent, I’m excited to see if we can create our own homegrown version of Black Hollywood. 🤞🏽✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 years

So glad that @bfmmag have reprinted #KoltonLee ‘s article. As the cowriter he refers to I proudly confirm every single incident &verify every single name. All are still prominent in the industry & very much why very little has changed & why I left the U.K.

REFLECTION: A Response to The BBC’s Moral Maze On Diversity

AKA Why I No Longer Want To Speak about Race & Diversity To the BFI (and all the other White People that provide public funding for filmmakers in the UK) or Any Of My White Producer friends: Af…

bfmmag.com

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 month

I always chuckle at the fact that folks, especially from a certain demographic, are so confident that the ‘other inequalities’ that they love to reference, have somehow been addressed in the uk industry. I’m kinda jealous I’d love to live in the world they think already exists😂

Guardian culture

@guardianculture

1 month

Sherwood writer says TV industry should treat class like other inequalities

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

This was the day my white grandfather (who was from a mining family) on seeing the police brutality, tearfully apologized for telling me that I must have been ‘doing something wrong’ & accusing me of ‘exaggerating’ about the constant police harassment I was receiving as a kid.

LGSM

@LGSMpride

4 years

On this day, 18 June 1984, the battle of Orgreave took place. The police showed the lengths they would go to to break the UK miners strike, with violent attacks, mass arrests and attempts to fabricate evidence and frame protestors.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

There’s nothing better than walking onto a set & seeing a diverse crew, actually scratch that-there is nothing better than WORKING with a diverse crew. Trust me!!! & the fact @ava & a team of women just destroyed one of the industries favorite excuses is just so damn satisfying✊🏽

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

7 years

When the great Lt. General Russell Honore calls 45 a SOB who doesn’t care about POC on #CNN you know shit is up!!! ✊🏾✊🏾✊🏾

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 years

@LenaWaithe @halleberry Started out shooting red carpets back in the day. Usually we were given the worst position in line, constantly Elbowed by the ‘other’ crews & treated with disdain by the stars flaks but @halleberry always gave us her time. She’s always been a real one✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Incredibly encouraging call with @Channel4 this morning about their development & support for the Black British production sector. I have got to say I do wish their approach to criticism (ie facing it head on)would be adopted by the rest of the uk industry.Cause that was healthy.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

11 months

It’s rare that you get to meet your heroes let alone become friends with them. Richard Roundtree was my absolute hero.I’m heartbroken waking up to this news. Rest easy Double R I’ll be having a few glasses of Gentleman Jim in your honor tonight. What a life. You’re damn right🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

Let’s be honest the Uk tv/film industry is so utterly terrified of ‘diversity’ mainly because it’s run by people who’s access & career progression was solely dependent on their race, class, wealth & family connection. Inclusion threatens to replace that privilege with talent. 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

26 days

@CampbellX Yeah it’s nothing against Mike we know what a collaborative filmmaker he in & we’re gonna champion anything with Marianne in it. 🖤✊🏽 It’s just simply about who uk funders give support to & who they create barriers for. its def reopened some very deep wounds for many of us.🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 year

When you think about the backlash we’re suffering just because for a few months people said that our lives mattered…. It’s fucking crazy. 😳

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Wow. Can’t believe it’s been 11 years since Whitney Houston passed. I had been filming her just two days before. I’ll never forget the huge smile she gave me when she walked in the room. She seemed really happy that night. 🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

First Mother’s Day, without mine. Feels weird. Sending love to everyone else who’s feeling weird today 😊❤️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

This reminded me that just before LUTHER Kolton Lee & myself (2 Black writers) were commissioned by @bbc to develop our Black cop series only to be told by the young white producer that our portrayals of Black characters weren’t authentic & she knew because she lived in Brixton🤷🏽‍♂️

Marcus Ryder

@marcusryder

3 years

How shud we judge "authentic" diversity portrayal? There are important principles of individual vs community representation.Yesterday BBC diversity exec @MirandawTV came under fire for raising the issue. A few thoughts on programs like Luther & KillingEve

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Preparing for my move back into the uk industry after 17 yrs in Black Hollywood but I’m just not sure I’m ready to again have to pretend I’m not really fucking good at my job or think smaller/cheaper because the project is Black or remember to be grateful just to be in the room…

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Meeting with young white @BBC producer about our Black police procedural (long before LUTHER) we (two Black writers) were told that our Black characters were not ‘authentic’ and she knew that because she had lived in Brixton.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Wasn’t expecting all these lovely kind words. So thank you every single one of you for taking the time to respond , she would have loved that❤️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

Yt tv execs in the uk will listen to Black music on their way to work, wearing clothing made popular by Black culture, use language that originated in the Black community and then tell you your ‘Black project’ is too niche and lacks popular appeal. It truly is wild 😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

The fact that SkyArts apparently promised to commission the @theBBTAs for 3 years during the height of last years racial reckoning only to quietly pull that support when the dust settled perfectly illustrates the Uk television industry’s ‘optics not action’ approach to inclusion.

The Stage

@TheStage

3 years

Sky Arts has been accused of showing a "sheer level of disdain" towards the Black British Theatre Awards by not commissioning the event for a second year, with organisers claiming the broadcaster had initially offered them long-term support

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 month

So now the uk tv execs all head home from @EdinburghTVFest , confident that they’re absolutely not the problem because they spoke about class on a panel.Forgetting that they spoke about disability last year, diversity the year before & Black lives before that…And FA has changed😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

6 months

When the uk industry talks of inclusion this is what they actually mean. We are allowed to participate on the strict understanding that your job is to keep others in your community in line… And sadly far too many of us are more than willing to take that deal 🤷🏽‍♂️

TMC Music Connoisseur 🇯🇲 QUESTION MARK ❓

@MusicConnoisseu

6 months

Ghetts: Free Congo ITV: you’re not allowed to speak politics One for the history books

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

So #LoversRock finally reach and I gotta say it’s pure poetry. Just beautiful. I’m quite emotional watching it. Nuff congratulations to @courttianewland this what we’ve been fighting for all these many many many years, beautiful Blackness on our screens, you delivered dred ✊🏽🖤

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

2 years

This is lovely from my mate Lennie James about a filmmaking Don, the legendary trailblazer Horace Ove 🖤✊🏽. Remember despite what they try and tell you kids. Black folks have a long and strong legacy in the uk industry.

Once banned, now knighted: how Horace Ové became the godfather of black British film-making

From skateboarding to reggae, from carnivals to police brutality, Ové blazed a trail through cinema. As the director picks up a title, actor Lennie James pays tribute to his mentor, friend and...

www.theguardian.com

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

All the great Black British talent that could have filled the spots inhabited by reruns & imports. All the creativity that could have been showcased & supported….it really does highlight the sheer lack of imagination the Uk industry has when it comes to Black British creatives.

London Hughes

@TheLondonHughes

3 years

Black hosts presenting one off versions of White British shows, one all Black episode of Hollyoaks, re-runs of Desmonds, re-runs of the US sitcom Black-ish, *Coloured* Come dine with me …Andd the US movie Moonlight?!! This is the best use of Black British talent??

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

1 month

6) hear the uk industry talk about class or race. I’m reminded of OFF THE GROVE & how the bastions of the uk industry rallied around to protect their own & ensure that none of us undesirables would ever get a look in. So again I say fuck their foundations, steering committees &

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Dear young uns, the uk film&tv industry ‘BLM inspired’ Steering commitee’s , celebrity filled Diversity fest’s & mentoring schemes are the exact same tactics they used to sideline previous generations of Black Brit creatives. This is not change, this is corporate damage control

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

I’ll never forget this moment. I desperately wanted to use it in the show open for BET-ABFF awards but HBO absolutely refused to license it. I often think if they’d let me, perhaps we would have been spared The Green Book 🤷🏽‍♂️

chris evans

@notcapnamerica

4 years

This is what black women have to deal with in professional spaces everyday. She could not have been more gentle in her delivery and she was instantly met with anger and hostility.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

4 years

Dear members of the Uk film and tv industry here’s a useful rule of thumb: if your anti racism receipts only stretch back three weeks perhaps you shouldn’t be LEADING D&I policy reform. 🤷🏽‍♂️

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 months

So excited to be creating his retrospective package for this amazing @ABFF event. Haven’t created anything for Denzel Washington before, so an absolute honor. 🖤✊🏽

Denzel Washington Set for Retrospective at American Black Film Festival (Exclusive)

The first-of-its-kind program will celebrate the career of the two-time Oscar winner, who will star in 'Gladiator 2' this fall and produce the film adaptation of 'The Piano Lesson.'

www.hollywoodreporter.com

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

7 months

The inability for uk execs to understand this simple truth is one of the reasons why the uk industry is withering on the vine.🤷🏽‍♂️

Variety

@Variety

7 months

"American Fiction" Oscar-winner Cord Jefferson on what the film's success means: "There is a market for depictions of Black life that are as broad and as deep as any other depictions of people's lives"

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

5 months

@f_a_q Yes I often wonder what indie she’s running now 😂

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

3 years

I’m glad #BlackToFront has made people aware of what many of us have been screaming forever.Our exclusion from the Uk industry has always been deliberate. The excuses used have always been easily disproved.I just hope the execs who have been in comfortable denial now step up 🤷🏽‍♂️.

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theBlaakRthefilmmaker

@BlaakRichardson

10 months

I wanna say something deep and profound about the unbridled privilege this business continually affords inexperienced mediocre yt men…but I’m laughing too much 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

Culture Crave 🍿

@CultureCrave

10 months

Netflix bought a sci-fi series from director Carl Rinsch in 2018 and spent $55M developing it Not a single episode has been finished Instead, the director has reportedly spent $11M of Netflix’s money gambling on risky stocks and buying dogecoin, which he flipped for $27M

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