INGLEWOOD – Crenshaw Dairy Mart, an abolitionist art collective, held its inaugural film festival “uplift[ing] and prioritiz[ing] underrepresented, LA-based filmmakers of color” at the Miracle Theatre in historic downtown Inglewood on Feb. 17.
The theme of the festival was “For the Love Of,” with five specific categories that center community values of “growth, love, resilience, and transformation narratives.”
Nineteen films were screened by genre block.
Featured filmmakers offered breathing room between blocks by answering short questions about their processes and inspirations. The audience was also prompted to vote for their favorite films via QR code which were tallied to determine the winner of one of two cash prizes—an audience pick prize, and a jury prize.
Key collaborations included co-presenter, LACMA, and support from Kashif, an incubator for BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, gender non-conforming, and disabled filmmakers.
The Inglewood-based art collective is housed just off of Crenshaw and Manchester, less than two miles from The Miracle Theater which was purchased and renovated by Owen Smith and Mariana Weber Smith in 2016.
The theater describes itself as “Inglewood’s only independent mid-size capacity entertainment and hospitality venue, this multi-purpose stage has hosted live music, comedy, television & film production.”
From February through May, they’ll be hosting a diverse selection of concerts and comedy shows according to their events page—including the acclaimed Netflix Is A Joke festival.
The theater is partnered with a nonprofit foundation of the same name that aims to provide jobs, training opportunities, and funding for creatives looking to build careers within “Inglewood’s growing sports and entertainment ecosystem.”
The event provided free popcorn to attendees. Drinks were available for purchase at the bar. After the screenings, there was an outdoor dance party.
While there has not been an announcement about future film festivals from Crenshaw Dairy Mart (CDM), they will resume exhibition programming on 02/28 with Gilded Dreams. The show features a new body of work by CDM co-founder and first-generation Mexican American artist, noé e. Olivas centering “the poetics of labor.”
