The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) dedicates a four-day weekend to showcase quality film and television content by and about people of African descent. This year, ABFF 2015 promoted greater diversity by adding the first multicultural Television & Media Expo, among other seminars and workshops at the event which was held June 11-14, 2015 at at the New York Hilton Midtown.
“The opportunities for minorities in Hollywood are still marginalized, and it’s as necessary as ever to push to promote diversity throughout the industry, from the images projected on screen, to the creative forces behind the scenes. We work with our partners to help advance talented newcomers with their careers,” ABFF founder and Film Life CEO Jeff Friday says in a statement.
ABFF, produced by Film Life, Inc. and Black Enterprise, is committed to the belief that black artists and content creators deserve the same opportunities as their mainstream counterparts. Friday conceived the idea for the festival in 1997 as a vehicle to promote diversity in the motion picture industry and has been aligning with brands that share his commitment to the film and TV industry.
Cadillac serves as a Premier Sponsor of ABFF 2015. During a private luncheon, Friday expressed his gratitude for the ongoing support of the GM Diversity team.
“Cadillac is one our sponsors. We can’t do this alone. If Cadillac goes away, if HBO goes away … we’d go away. It’s really important we acknowledge them. You as media and we as consumers… it’s important we let these companies know what they do impact us and its important.”
On hand at the luncheon was ABFF’s 2015 Ambassador, Taraji Henson, who joked to press and GM execs that she’d look good in one of their cars and she’s open to a gift.
“Thank you Cadillac…y’all know Cookie can sell some cars,” she jokes.
Cadillac sponsored the opening night film, Dope. Check out photos from the Daring Greatly luncheon on Thursday at The Chester and the Dope screening.
