Three-time Black Reel Award winner John Legend, Common, and director John Singleton are among the special guests scheduled to participate in the Blackhouse Foundation’s slate of panel discussions at the Sundance Film Festival.
Common will participate in a panel discussion sponsored by Campaign for Black Male Achievement, alongside director Gerard McMurray (Burning Sands) and Franklin Leonard, film executive and founder of the publication The Black List. Legend, executive producer of WGN America’s Underground, will be on hand to talk about the television series’ upcoming second season. He’ll be joined by two of the show’s stars, Jurnee Smollett-Bell and Aldis Hodge, and its creators Misha Green and Joe Pokaski.
Singleton will lead the conversation for the BET-sponsored panel Rise Up: The Evolution of Black Womanhood on Screen. He’ll also introduce a clip from his new BET series, Rebel. The drama stars Giancarlo Esposito and Danielle Moné Truitt and co-stars rapper Cliff “Method Man” Smith, among others. Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Jill Scott composed the music for the pilot.
Additional Blackhouse programming highlights include a discussion with director McMurray of the aforementioned Burning Sands, which stars Moonlight’s Trevante Rhodes, and the HBCU Rising panel session. The latter is tied to filmmaker Stanley Nelson’s documentary Tell Them We Are Rising: The Story of Black Colleges and Universities due later this year. Grammy-nominated singer/producer/DJ Vikter Duplaix will be curating the music for Blackhouse’s evening festivities.
This year marks Blackhouse Foundation’s 10th year at Sundance. Founded in 2006 by chairman Brickson Diamond, the organization focuses on expanding opportunities for minority content creators in film, television, digital and emerging platforms.
The discussions will be held at the Buona Vita restaurant in Park City, Utah, Blackhouse’s four-day run at the annual event kicks off Jan. 20 and ends Jan. 23.