A Jet Black Future
Experimental
•
Short Films, 27-Mar-2026
After decades of collecting dust, a restored visual manifesto captures a revolutionary’s jazz-smacked, Afro-apocalyptic address to a burning world. Joel Watson’s “A Jet Black Future” is a frenetic piece of docu-fiction spawning an impassioned poet on a bright day in Brooklyn. An opening card throttles us into the future, 2050, and we learn of the recently discovered footage of ‘NAPC’ revolutionary Umar Olufunke. He stands atop an aluminum coated roof, preaching in sun goggles and a star-studded du-rag. We bounce between the sermon and a birds-eye-view of the street. The oracle strolls from corner to corner, suspect of stalkers and by-standers. A neighbor shouts at him to shut up and get down, but he refuses, upholding the torch of his endangered artistry. The man, his energy, and authenticity cannot be denied. Joel Watson, actor and director, brings the messianic figure to life. -JM. Director: Joel Watson. Cast: Joel Watson, LEONNE. Cinematographer: Neil Shukla. Editor: Neil Shukla. Producers: Joel Watson, Olivia Von Hesse, Neil Shukla. Colorist: Neil Shukla. Sound Engineer: Daniel Tishelman. Original Score: Lucas Ebeling. Location Sound: Hudson McNeese.
Up Next in Experimental
-
Brain Rot
A lonely girl falls in love with a woman who is secretly trying to turn her into a CRT television. Jay Villalobos directs “Brain Rot,” a mostly silent experimental film built with lo-fi textures and fragmented storytelling. At an arcade, Jessie meets a woman and they start going out. It’s not lon...
-
Patient
Fiction, reality, the private and the performed all overlap at a medical center on a routine day. Lori Felker directs “Patient,” a docu-fictional account of a training exercise for medical students. Each student is paired with an actor, also known as a "standardized patient,” who is assigned with...
-
Portrait 001: Security Guard
A security guard walks his old beat in an abandoned strip mall, contemplating his purpose in guarding the vacant property. “Portrait 001: Security Guard,” directed by Tanner D. Masseth, is an existential portrait rendering a 3D-animated subject in a dismal suburban landscape. With a distinctive a...
