Short films on contemporary life, art, and culture on AfroPoP.
AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange spotlights contemporary stories reflecting the spirit, ingenuity, and resilience found among people of the African diaspora. Each season, five films are presented which reflect realities, restore spirits, celebrate triumphs, and unite people around the world.
Betye Saar
There’s no stopping the legendary artist Betye Saar, even at age 93. Pushing boundaries for 70 years, this portrait of artist Betye Saar shows she isn’t done fighting inequality in her personal and powerful work.
Betye Saar: Taking Care of Business
Inside her LA studio, Saar talks about collecting objects, African American history, art as a weapon, and making people think.
Bill Traylor: Chasing Ghosts
Born into slavery in 1853, Bill Traylor spent most of his life working the land in rural Alabama. He began drawing and painting in his later years, often with found materials.
The Art of Bill Traylor
This film, by Jeffrey Wolf and Daphne McWilliams, is a compelling narrative about a man who, despite the hardships of legalized racism, produced a body of work exhibited in today’s leading museums and collections worldwide. Part of AfroPoP’s 15th season.
Go to worldchannel.org/episode/chasing-ghosts to learn more.
Restitution? Africa’s Fight for Its Art
The troubling story of the African artwork that fills European museums, and whose return is now being demanded by their countries of origin.
Through the burning question of their possible restitution, the film invites us to reconsider both our cultural heritage and museums’ role in reinventing our relationship with Africa. Part of AfroPoP’s 14th season.
View these free, short films at worldchannel.org/show/afropop, or go to the World Channel’s YouTube page, www.youtube.com/@WORLDChannel/playlists.
AfroPoP recognizes that nonfiction — and Afro-futurism in particular — has provided a critical tool for Black storytellers to define present and future realities on their own terms. By embracing fiction and nonfiction stories, AfroPoP acknowledges that there is no distinction in the power of both genres to offer audiences deep insight into the global Black Experience.