#SciFiSunday: #BlackSciFiDoc Invisible Universe
Since my first plug for producer/director M. Asli Dukan (@InvUniDoc) and her much anticipated opus, Invisible Universe, an exploration of speculative fiction in books and films by Black content creators, I have understood from face to face interactions that her work is prime to have wider influence and impact than she herself initially imagined.
Better are the words from the re-vamped website:
While Black creators imagined better futures for Black people within their fictional works of SF, in reality, the everyday, lived experiences of Black people in the United States – e.g., the rise of massive inequality, the prison industrial complex, and police brutality – stood in stark contrast. She began to wonder if these phenomena were related.
Told through the ever-present lens and off-screen narrator voice of the filmmaker, Invisible Universe will explore this question by examining the work of Black creators of SF through the ideology of the emerging Black Lives Matter movement, which addresses the systematic oppression of Black lives. Since she began the documentary, the filmmaker has compiled an extensive interviewee list of Black writers, artists and filmmakers of SF who have been creating works where Black people not only exist in the future, but are powerful shapers of their own realities, whether in magical lands, dystopian settings, or on distant worlds.
In addition, she has documented an ever-increasing number of academic, community and arts events dedicated to the work and critical analysis of Black SF, as well as building connections between the creators, thinkers, organizers and fans. In the past decade, the filmmaker has documented the cultural shift around Black SF and its explicit connections to Black liberation. This documentary explores the idea that in a world of capitalist exploitation, anti-Black oppression and state violence, Black creators are speculating better worlds as a means of resistance and survival.
The success of Dukan's labor is absolutely remarkable, a feat that is a gift to those of us in the present and certainly our future generations who will rely on Invisible Universe as a resource for empowerment and education. While we wait impatiently for the full feature and extras to be available, it is never too late for your monetary hand/financial support of this project to prosper at a much more palatable pace.
The Invisible Universe Foundation is "dedicated to researching and promoting the history of African Americans in speculative fiction (fantasy, horror, and science fiction) literature, cinema and related multimedia through the activities of archiving and producing literary and media materials and presenting cultural events." Additionally, the new The Invisible Universe Vlog Series gives us insight into key phrases used in the text and a historical overview that helps frame the documentary.
1: What is the White Fantastic Imagination & 2: The Invisible Universe in SF Film are available to watch now!
Brand New Website | Facebook | Mizan Media Productions
Image: Woman pointing to the universe By Javier Pardina