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Afronerd Radio can now be heard LIVE courtesy of Apple Music/Itunes

What's the 411, AFROnerdists? Let's jump into the fray, per usual.  Welcome to the umpteenth edition of Afronerd Radio's The Grindhouse stream, airing each and every Sunday at 8 p.m. on the BTalk 100 cyber-broadcasting platform.  Join your synthetically-engineered AFROnerdist hosts as they decipher this week's coded topics:  Dburt and the "Uncanny" Daryll B., continue to muse about the importance of Black History Month while providing anecdotal data; a noted DC comics artist is being accused of tracing another (Marvel) artist's cover; 

And for the sake of brevity, let's just group the following racially tinged stories together: popular actress, Awkwafina aka Nora Lum (Shang-Chi franchise, Crazy Rich Asians) continues to defend accusations of minstrelsy and cultural appropriation of a "blaccent" in the wake of being nominated for an NAACP Image Award; comedian/podcaster, Joe Rogan apologizes for his past usage of the n-word and actress Thandiwe Newton apologies to darker-hued Black actresses for some odd reason; more thoughts about the latest episode of HBO Max' Peacemaker series; the high-anticipated return of The Boondocks gets torpedoed before it gets started; Is Marvel critiquing its rival publisher, DC, for Superman's interdimensional prison, his Phantom Zone via Sabretooth #1?; Lastly, in a present-day Black History moment, astronaut Dr. Jessica Watkins, is destined to be the first Black woman to be part of the International Space Station team and, therefore, embarking on an extended time in space. Excelsior!      

One thing that Dburt is doing (finally) is investing in cryptocurrency, courtesy of Roundlyx. We would implore our followers to investigate, discern and then explore by using our referral code: afro-87A4BF

Call us LIVE at 508-645-0100. AFTER CLICKING ON THE HIGHLIGHTED LINK, GO DIRECTLY TO AFRONERD RADIO!!! 

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BGN interviews actor/comedian Michelle Buteau for the Universal Pictures film Marry Me.

Packed with original songs by Jennifer Lopez and global Latin music star Maluma, Marry Me arrives next Valentine’s Day with Lopez starring as musical superstar Kat Valdez and Owen Wilson as Charlie Gilbert, a math teacher—total strangers who agree to marry and then get to know each other. An unlikely romance about two different people searching for something real in a world where value is based on likes and followers, Marry Me is a modern love story about celebrity, marriage and social media.

Kat Valdez (Lopez) is half of the sexiest celebrity power couple on Earth with hot new music supernova Bastian (Maluma, making his feature-film debut). As Kat and Bastian’s inescapable hit single, “Marry Me,” climbs the charts, they are about to be wed before an audience of their fans in a ceremony that will be streamed across multiple platforms. 

Divorced high-school math teacher Charlie Gilbert (Owen Wilson) has been dragged to the concert by his daughter Lou (Chloe Coleman, Big Little Lies) and his best friend (Sarah Silverman). When Kat learns, seconds before the ceremony, that Bastian has cheated on her with her assistant, her life turns left as she has a meltdown on stage, questioning love, truth, and loyalty. As her gossamer world falls away, she locks eyes with a stranger—a face in the crowd.

If what you know lets you down, then perhaps what you don’t know is the answer, and so, in a moment of inspired insanity, Kat chooses to marry Charlie. What begins as an impulsive reaction evolves into an unexpected romance. But as forces conspire to separate them, the universal question arises: Can two people from such different worlds bridge the gulf between them and build a place where they both belong?

The film also stars John Bradley (Game of Thrones), Michelle Buteau (Michelle Buteau: Welcome to Buteaupia) and Utkarsh Ambudkar (Mulan).

Interviewer: Jeandra LeBeauf

Video Editor: Jamie Broadnax

Marry Me premieres in theaters on Valentine’s Day.

By Désirée I. Guzzetta

Originally planned as a hybrid online/in-person event, Sundance 2022 wound up pivoting to online only, with only the satellite screenings in other cities doing in-person events, because of a spike in coronavirus cases. While the caution was appreciated, the last-minute switch to the virtual world did have some minor hiccups for some, including difficulty pulling up Q&A sessions after live premieres, and avatars in the New Frontier “Spaceship” unable to move around and/or interact with others. Most of those, fortunately, were just blips on an otherwise fun experience high above the digital Earth.

According to the Sundance Institute, 14,849 submissions for the Sundance Festival were received, but only 84 feature films and 59 short films made the cut. Sundance provides a breakdown of the number of features directed by women, non-binary individuals, people of color, and LGBTQ+ on their website by all features and by the various competitions. The inclusive nature of Sundance means lots of opportunities for diversity. For example, in the U.S. Documentary Competition, 77% of the filmmakers identify as women, and in the U.S. Dramatic Competition, 50% of the filmmakers identify as people of color. It was refreshing getting to experience so many new voices in cinema telling their own stories.

My own Sundance stats include taking in 28 movies, including the opening night premiere of Sam Green’s 32 Sounds in the Cinema House virtual movie theater. “Housed” on the Spaceship, the online area where all the New Frontier offerings could be found, the Cinema House had virtual chairs in front of a virtual screen where special events were presented to crowds of avatars. Viewers could show applause by hitting the spacebar on their keyboards, which made the user’s avatar jump up and down. Those viewing via VR headsets could wave their avatar’s arms around. It could be a little chaotic at times as everyone figured out what their avatars could do, but it added to the digital ambiance of the events. The funniest part was people whose avatars got stuck on the Cinema House stage, as it’s not like you could really yell “Down in front!” and have anyone hear you. Of course, the Cinema House included a way to make the virtual screen full-screen so you didn’t have to see the avatars sitting in front of you.

I didn’t get as many shorts in as I wanted this year, but I did see 17 in their entirety (12 live-action and five animated), plus a sampling of nine I wasn’t able to finish because I ran out of time. I also saw several live Q&As and a few Q&A replays, but only got to a few New Frontier events. One was “Gondwana,” a 24-hour stream that could be accessed via VR or on the website in a livestream and which was very moving and enlightening, and the final celebratory “Donna Summer Dance Party” in the Cinema House, where avatars could “dance” and mingle. A video chat feature on the avatars allowed you to speak with other attendees in virtual bars and lounges, though the dance party wasn’t the best place for that because so many avatars were jumping around and the music was loud–just like a real dance hall. Several films included “film parties” in lounges in the Spaceship so that attendees could discuss what they just saw in a more intimate setting. Unfortunately, I don’t own a VR headset yet, so I missed out on a lot of the New Frontier offerings. I know what I’m getting myself for my birthday, though!

My favorite place to play around in the Spaceship when not watching films was the “IDFA DocLab at Sundance,” which had a video store theme this year and didn’t require any special VR gear. It was a nice way to relax, discuss the films screened, and shave a big hairy wall with friends. It was also a space where budding filmmakers could connect with industry folk. In this current era of isolation, it was great being able to “hang out” with people safely.

In addition to 32 Sounds, I saw several horror films, a few documentaries, and some dramatic fare. My favorite feature watches include FRESH, After Yang, The Territory, and Navalny, which was a late addition to the festival and won two Audience awards (and for good reason, as it’s absolutely electric). I’ll have capsule reviews coming soon, so watch this space. But for mingling in the digital world, the New Frontier, despite some glitches (probably based on the late pivot to all-online possibly causing Sundance being unable to have the same behind-the-scenes folks working on the platform as last year), is highly recommended. I hope it comes back again next year regardless of the festival’s setting.

The post Sundance Fundance on The Spaceship appeared first on The Nerd Element.

Apple TV+ announced today They Call Me Magic, the highly anticipated four-part documentary event that takes an illuminating, holistic look into the life and career of Earvin “Magic” Johnson, one of the world’s most iconic figures, will premiere April 22 on Apple TV+. They Call Me Magic offers a rare glimpse into the incredible real-life story of Johnson, who left his mark on history through his work — both on and off the court—and continues to impact our culture today.

With unprecedented access, the docuseries explores Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s remarkable journey from being the face of the Los Angeles Lakers and cementing himself as an all-time NBA legend, to changing the conversation around HIV, and transforming into a successful entrepreneur and community activist. From his humble beginnings in Lansing, Michigan to becoming the global force he is today, They Call Me Magic features intimate interviews with Magic, his family, and an all-star lineup, as the docuseries charts the cinematic life of one of the biggest cultural icons of our era.

They Call Me Magic joins a growing lineup of acclaimed and award-winning docuseries and documentaries on Apple TV+ including Emmy Award-winning Boys State; The Velvet Underground, the acclaimed documentary from director Todd Haynes; Critics Choice Award-winning and Emmy and Grammy Award-nominated Beastie Boys Story; the global smash hit documentary Billie Eilish: The World’s A Little Blurry; Werner Herzog’s Critics Choice Documentary Award nominee Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds; as well as upcoming documentaries The Supermodels; and Number One on the Call Sheet, from acclaimed storytellers Jamie Foxx, Kevin Hart, Datari Turner, and Dan Cogan.