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By: Hank StueverSource: Washington Post BET’s sharp and persuasive documentary “Smoke: Marijuana + Black America” is undaunted by the enormous tasks it sets out for itself, not the least of which is to describe a certain profound link between pot and daily existence. The film, airing Wednesday night, is equal parts love story, tragedy and outrage — a cultural history running parallel to the nation’s systemic and hypocritical [...]

By Lauren Messman Source: The New York Times Between network, cable and streaming, the modern television landscape is a vast one. Here are some of the shows, specials and movies coming to TV this week, Nov. 16-22. Details and times are subject to change. Monday ALL RISE 9 p.m. on CBS. Judge Lola Carmichael, played by Simone Missick, is back for a new season of this legal drama. The [...]

Executive Produced and Narrated by Multi-platinum Rapper and Entrepreneur Nasir “Nas” Jones The Two-Hour Original Documentary Explores Black America’s Complex Relationship with Marijuana and the Current Fight to Reap the Benefits of Legalization. “SMOKE” Will Premiere Wednesday, November 18 at 10 PM ET/PT Produced by Swirl Films, “SMOKE” will Feature Sit-Down Interviews with Senator Kamala D. Harris, Senator Cory Booker, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, Cook County, Illinois [...]

By Lucas Shaw, Gerry Smith and Kelly Gilblom September 22, 2020 Source: Bloomberg.com The coming fall TV season promises to be full of drama—just not the kind that network executives originally imagined. In a normal year, Fox, CBS, NBC, CW and ABC would be rolling out a carefully engineered slate of new shows to premiere in late September or early October. For decades, the broadcast networks in [...]

By: Jeremy Fuster Last Updated: September 10, 2020 @ 7:17 AM Source:The Wrap Swirl Films and Mansa Productions announced on Wednesday the top 10 winners of its first-ever Black Life Film Festival, a showcase of short films that show “the beauty and complexities of ‘Black Life’ and what that means to individuals and society.” The top 10 winners will receive $5,000 grants to continue their film careers [...]

Posted on 09/09/2020 by Harlem World Magazine TV One’s edgy docu-series UNCENSORED, which explores the private lives of some of today’s most notable personalities, highlights singer and actor Tyrese this Sunday, September 13, 2020, at 10 P.M. ET/9C followed by an encore presentation at 11 PM/9C The episode will re-air on Wednesday, September 16 at 10 PM/9C. In this episode, Tyrese opens up about his marriage, the colorism [...]

By: Cynthia Littleton Aug 26, 2020 5:41am PT Source: Variety Atlanta-based Gray Television has expanded its investment in indie Swirl Films with a deal designed to provide Swirl with more resources to produce series and made-for-TV movies. Swirl Films, headed by producer Eric Tomosunas, is a prolific supplier of movies to outlets such as BET, Netflix, TV One, Lifetime, Hallmark Channel and Up. The company has expanded into multi-part [...]

Image: Mike Ehrmann/BIG3 via Getty Images By Etan Vlessing. 5:00 AM PDT 7/30/2020 Image: Mike Ehrmann/BIG3 via Getty Images Source: The Hollywood Reporter The man who fought censorship all the way to the Supreme Court is getting deeper into Hollywood production with the 'Saints & Sinners' producer. Former 2 Live Crew rapper Luther Campbell, who fought censorship all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, has partnered with [...]

$5,000 film grants will be awarded to the directors of ten short films about Black life and culture Jeremy Fuster | June 15, 2020 @ 12:38 PM Atlanta-based film and TV production studio Swirl Films announced on Monday the launch of the Black Life Film Festival, a new showcase of upcoming Black filmmakers and their short films. Created in partnership with Mansa Productions, the Black Life Film Festival has opened [...]

By Jillian Morgan   June 29, 2020 Eric Tomosunas’s indie Swirl Films (producer of TV One’s Uncensored) and Kellon Akeem’s Mansa Productions (Percy, Nine Days), both based in Atlanta, are gearing up to debut the virtual Black Life Film Fest (BLFF), a joint effort to “support and empower” Black filmmakers across the U.S. The digital festival, set to launch Sept. 5, will spotlight short films — including documentaries — that explore the “beauty and complexities [...]