Now in its 25th year, ABFF, a subsidiary of Jeff Friday Media, is a flourishing powerhouse event. The fest welcomes some 7,000-10,000 attendees each year, functioning not only as a showcase for cinematic talent, but also as a launchpad for Black artists working both before and behind the camera. This year, with pandemic-era safety concerns still afloat and the coronavirus impacting people of color at disproportionate rates, ABFF celebrates its landmark quarter-century anniversary Nov. 3-28 via its global online platform ABFF Play.
“It was the toughest decision I’ve ever had to make around the festival planning ever,” says Friday of the decision to keep things virtual. “And it was strictly a business-slash-social decision. We saw the numbers ticking up and the Delta variant on the rise, and we just didn’t think it was in the best interest of our community to bring people together. Health and safety always comes first.”
That said, the selection of films screening at ABFF will not be compromised. To wit, “King Richard,” Reinaldo Marcus Green’s biopic charting the rise of tennis icons Venus and Serena Williams under the tutelage of their indefatigably optimistic father, Richard (Will Smith), opens the fest.
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