From November 1-5, the Urbanworld Film Festival returned to New York City for their 27th year. The festival was a hybrid of both live and virtual screenings showcasing narrative and documentary features, short films, music videos, and web originals. The DGA has been a sponsor of Urbanworld since 2000.

As part of the Guild’s outreach efforts aimed at independent filmmakers, the DGA hosted a luncheon on November 2 for Directors with entries in this year’s festival. Filmmakers were welcomed by DGA Assistant Executive Director Mary Hatch, who gave a brief overview of the Guild’s mission to protect the creative and economic rights of Directors and members of the directorial team. Hatch then introduced DGA Director-member/DGA Alternate Board Member and Urbanworld alum Benny Boom, whose project,  A Love Letter to Hip Hop, was being screened at the festival.

Boom spoke to the attendees about what it means to be a part of the DGA filmmaking community and the advantages of having the Guild behind you when filming. Urbanworld Programmer & Producer Ashley Mui and Head of Programming Karen McMullen, were also on hand to give tips about how to make the most of the opportunities provided by the festival.

Other DGA members with projects spotlighted during the festival included Directors Thembi Banks (Young. Wild. Free.) and Zoey Martinson (Incomplete).

About the Festival

Founded in 1997 by Stacy Spikes, the Urbanworld Film Festival is a five-day event that also includes panel discussions, and the Urbanworld Digital track focused on digital and social media. The Festival is an initiative of the Urbanworld Foundation Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to redefining the role of minorities in contemporary cinema and developing the urban filmmaking community.

• For more information visit http://urbanworld.org.