When Black History Month arrives every year, perhaps the most common question I hear posed by classmates, family and friends is: How can I show my support for the Black community? Rest assured, there are plenty of ways to genuinely uplift and encourage this community, but my favorite course of action — as a self-proclaimed film connoisseur— is to stream feature films created by contemporary Black filmmakers.
Many moviegoers would be surprised to see the number of award-winning films that are written, produced and directed solely by Black artists in the entertainment industry because media outlets frequently neglect their duty to spotlight such brilliant minds. So, here are nine groundbreaking filmmakers that should be celebrated for their diverse contributions to Hollywood’s past-and-present production slate:
(If you haven’t already streamed their fabulous feature flicks, try to save some time to do so this month!)
- Jordan Peele
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Jordan Peele Oscars GIF By The Academy Awards via Giphy One of my favorite filmmakers of all time, Jordan Peele, recently released his mind-bending sci-fi film Nope in theaters. He’s an Oscar-winning filmmaker known for spine-tingling suspense, powerful lead characters and underlying political messages.
Recommendations: Nope, Us, Get Out
- Ryan Coogler
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GIF By 52nd NAACP Image Awards via Giphy Love superheroes? How about Michael B. Jordan? Well, you’ve come to the right place. Director Ryan Coogler has created meaningful yet action-packed films for moviegoers all around the world, plus he’s known for frequently working with Jordan in his projects (lucky us!).
Recommendations: Black Panther, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Creed I-III
- F. Gary Gray
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Set It Off GIF via Giphy Despite paving his way to success through the direction of critically-acclaimed music videos for artists like Usher, Jay-Z, Dr. Dre and Ice Cube, Gray has proven himself worthy of the film genre with numerous box-office successes in the past decade.
Recommendations: Set It Off, Straight Outta Compton, Men in Black: International, The Fate of the Furious
- Kasi Lemmons
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Kasi Lemmons Women GIF By Half The Picture via Giphy This one’s for the ladies! Writer-director Kasi Lemmons has dedicated her career to sharing the stories of accomplished Black women throughout history. Whether traveling back a century or a few decades, Lemmons films will bring to light any story that’s truly worth sharing.
Recommendations: Harriet, Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody
- Barry Jenkins
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Barry Jenkins Moonlight GIF By A24 via Giphy Two-time nominee and one-time winner at the Academy Awards, Barry Jenkins’s achingly beautiful romantic-dramas center around powerful stories with even more powerful characters. You won’t want to miss his past works or the rest of his bright career.
Recommendations: Moonlight, If Beale Street Could Talk—and an upcoming Lion King spin-off!
- Ava DuVernay
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Ava Duvernay Ifc GIF By Film Independent Spirit Awards via Giphy Female Bruins in film unite! UCLA grad Ava DuVernay started in the film industry after receiving degrees in both English and African-American Studies. Six years ago, DuVernay’s film 13th was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. Check out some of her other work as she continues to make a name for herself in Hollywood!
Recommendations: Selma, A Wrinkle in Time, 13th
- Kenya Barris
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Happy Tonight Show GIF By The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon via Giphy Kenya Barris is a fresh face in the film industry, having previously created and written successful television-comedies Black-ish and Grown-ish. His newest film You People just dropped on Netflix, a fresh take on the rom-com genre starring Lauren London and Jonah Hill!
Recommendations: You People
- Malcolm D. Lee
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GIF By Girls Trip via Giphy In the mood for some laughs? Look no further than critically-acclaimed writer-director, Malcolm D. Lee (cousin to Academy Award-nominated filmmaker, Spike Lee). The all-star (female-led!) cast of his comedy Girls Trip is perfect for any girls night-in!
Recommendations: Space Jam: A New Legacy, Girls Trip, Night School
- Peter Ramsey
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We See You Youre Powerful Phil Lord GIF By The Academy Awards via Giphy Diving into the feature-film world with his animation expertise, Peter Ramsey has taken the industry by storm with the Oscar-winning film, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Check out some of his lesser-known animations, too — they’re very well-written and an impressive sight to behold!
Recommendations: Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Rise of the Guardians
The beauty of making motion pictures is the opportunity to share stories of passion, politics, friendship, history and so much more — they are telling the stories that need to be told. Many of the directors on this list have impacted the entertainment industry with their standout pieces advocating for some much-needed change in today’s world. Help their voices be heard this Black History Month by streaming every masterpiece film they poured their hearts and souls into in recent years.
The first step towards solidarity is support. Be a friend, be an ally, then be a force of change.