Raoul Peck’s I Am Not Your Negro made box office history at the Film Society this weekend, having the highest-grossing opening weekend in our organization’s history with more than 15 sold-out screenings. We’re thrilled that New Yorkers came out to support this vital documentary, an incisive look at race in America crafted through the words of James Baldwin, and we tip our cap to Magnolia Pictures for the documentary’s exciting success nationwide.
In conjunction with the opening of this important film, hundreds of students from Harlem, the Bronx, the Lower East Side, and Newark were invited for private education screenings, accompanied by post-film conversations to discuss the work of James Baldwin and how racial bias in America impacts their lives today.
To accommodate the demand, additional screenings have been added throughout the week, plus a Q&A with Peck will take place following tomorrow’s 5:30pm screening. We encourage attendees to purchase tickets in advance before they sell out.
I Am Not Your Negro, which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, had previously screened at the Film Society in the 54th New York Film Festival’s Spotlight on Documentary section. Raoul Peck participated in a Q&A at the festival, which can be viewed on our  YouTube channel or listened to on our weekly podcast, The Close-Up. Additionally, you can watch Peck’s interview for the festival’s Soft Focus video series, in which he spoke about telling stories using both fiction and documentary forms.
For even more exclusive content, the current issue of Film Comment magazine features an extended article discussing Peck’s use of Baldwin’s writing and how the film reflects on race, and a print-only interview with the director.
Also playing this week at the Film Society: Tomer Heymann’s masterfully crafted Mr. Gaga, a documentary about renowned Israeli choreographer Ohad Naharin.
