It shows that our union is the greatest weapon against the assault on black people in America.”. So don’t tell me how to cast my movie. A couple's first date takes an unexpected turn when a police officer pulls them over. Lena Waithe, Writer/Producer, and Melina Matsoukas, Director/Producer, attend the QUEEN & SLIM World Premiere Gala Screening at AFI FEST 2019 in Hollywood, CA on Thursday, November 14, 2019. More from IndieWire “The script is so well written, so black, so honest,’ Gay said. Queen & Slim from Emmy-winning Writer Lena Waith and Grammy Award-winning Director Melina Matsoukas is “Urgent and beautiful” - Associated Press. But for writer Lena Waithe and director Melina Matsoukas, who are also producers on the project, the process of packaging “Queen & Slim” was more seamless than usual. She grew up on the films of Spike Lee, Mira Nair and Pedro Almodovar, filmmakers with unfiltered visions about the human experience. It’s not reflective of the society in which we live in or the industry as it stands today. Writer and actor Lena Waithe joined forces with director Melina Matsoukas on the film Queen & Slim.The full-length feature, which stars the effervescent Daniel … Sign up for our Email Newsletters here. Director Melina Matsoukas and Writer Lena Waithe are interviewed for their new film Queen & Slim. Matsoukas doesn’t expect for the Oscar nominations next month to correct the gender parity that’s missing at the Golden Globes. The new film Queen & Slim marks two debuts: It is the first film to be written by Master of None and The Chi actor and writer Lena Waithe, while also … How ‘Minari’ Found the Answer, The Visceral Cinema of ‘Sound of Metal’ Was Rooted in an Immersive Set, Oscar Cinematography Survey: Here Are the Cameras and Lenses Used to Shoot 32 Awards Contenders, The 7 Best Movies New to Netflix in April 2021, ‘Godzilla vs. Kong’ Director Adam Wingard: ‘I Can’t Wait to Use the Potential That This Might Buy Me’, Regé-Jean Page Opens Up on Exiting ‘Bridgerton’ Ahead of Season 2: ‘It’s a One-Season Arc’, Oscars 2021: Here’s What We Know About the Show, from Union Station Set and Masks to Red Carpet. Step behind-the-scenes of Queen & Slim with director Melina Matsoukas and writer Lena Waithe. Copyright © 2021 Penske Business Media, LLC. Instead, go ahead and make yours.”, Slim (Daniel Kaluuya) and Queen (Jodie Turner-Smith) in “Queen & Slim”, It’s that kind of frank attitude that has gotten Waithe into some hot water in the recent past, including the backlash to a June 2019 New York Times profile titled “Lena Waithe: Why Aren’t Black Stars Funding Films by Black Auteurs?”. I believe they’ve created an unsafe work environment.”. It’s gutting — and the way the movie always had to end, writer Lena Waithe … Screenwriter & Producer Lena Waithe and Director Melina Matsoukas discuss Queen And Slim. When she woke up on Dec. 9 to the news that her movie, “Queen & Slim,” a powerful drama about a young black couple forced to go on the run after a fatal encounter with a racist cop, hadn’t received a single nomination, she wasn’t surprised. She is a writer and producer, known for Master of None (2015), Ready Player One (2018) and Queen & Slim (2019). It was an event that she’d entered into with some trepidation. Getty Images offers exclusive rights-ready and premium royalty-free analog, HD, and 4K video of the highest quality. The Hollywood Foreign Press encountered an avalanche of criticism this week for not nominating a single female director or screenwriter for the Golden Globes. “They just paid for the movie and supported us, and let us do our thing, which was incredible,” she said. As a result of what Universal believed to be a lack of interest in “Queen & Slim,” the studio cancelled a scheduled Globes press conference for Nov. 16. The camera then cuts to Queen and Slim’s shared funeral and a graffiti memorial that forever immortalizes them. Director Melina Matsoukas didn’t bother to set her alarm for the Golden Globes announcement. It’s obviously very imbalanced. Co-written by Ansari and Waithe, the episode was based on Waithe’s own coming-out story. With Daniel Kaluuya, Jodie Turner-Smith, Bokeem Woodbine, Chloë Sevigny. Luckily, Matsoukas was ready to parlay her music video industry bonafides into directing features. As Queen & Slim starts, the hero and heroine are on a Tinder date sure to be their only meeting. “We didn’t have to … She said wished that she’d phrased her argument in different terms — but still very much stands by its empowering message of ownership and self-reliance, something that Tyler Perry received a standing ovation for preaching when he received the Ultimate Icon Award at this summer’s BET Awards. Queen and Slim is a daring reflection of the 21st century state of race and culture in America. And despite some initial ambivalence from Matsoukas, Kaluuya would eventually book the part. I’m trying to do something kind of revolutionary here, by being truly authentic to our experience, and without compromise. As the situation spirals, the man kills the officer in self-defense, forcing the two to go on the run. In the past 91 years, only five women have been nominated for best directing at the Academy Awards. “I always want to go with the best person for the role, and I want to give audiences the best movie possible. “I’m always going to be hopeful because that’s who I am, but I don’t have a lot of faith in any institutions in this country because they have always discredited and disregarded work by women and people of color. Matsoukas said she’s decided to speak out because she hopes ongoing dialogue will bring about change in an industry that still doesn’t represent the diversity of moviegoers. Queen & Slim is a 2019 American romantic road crime drama film directed by Melina Matsoukas (in her feature directorial debut) and with a screenplay by Lena Waithe from a story by James Frey and Waithe. “Lena was always clear about the film being about two black people falling in love as the world is burning down around them, and so we created it to honor the black lives lost to police brutality, and to inspire discussion on the issue,” she said. There was also the potential backlash the project would face for casting a British actress in what many considered a quintessentially African American role. Lena Waithe and Melina Matsoukas, the visionaries behind Queen & Slim, may usher in a new era of Black filmmaking with their first feature film debut—one in which Black filmmakers don’t compromise their concept or work themselves into an early … It was released on November 27, 2019, by Universal Pictures. Lena Waithe, Writer: Master of None. But Waithe said she wasn’t concerned. And in the case of “Queen & Slim,” she mostly accomplished that, crafting a provocative, genre-bending narrative that unapologetically celebrates black love, culture and solidarity, both on the screen and behind the camera, as represented by the two women who came together to make exactly the film they wanted. 'THEM': Douglas Sirk Inspired Little Marvin's Nightmarish Look at the American Dream, 'THEM' Review: A Strong Start, but a Shaky Finish to Amazon Prime's New Terror Anthology, Emmy Predictions: Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series -- 'SNL,' 'Ted Lasso,' and Everyone Else, Oscars 2021: Best Animated Feature Predictions, received a standing ovation for preaching. She did so knowing early on that Matsoukas was her only choice to direct it. Waithe also stands firm in her view that she should be able to cast her movie as she wants to, and that the audience should trust her judgement. My conversations with [ star ] Daniel [ Kaluuya ] ” Waithe said of the Academy infuriating. 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