We Are Parable, the UK-based organisation that celebrates Black cinema from around the world, is making its debut trip to Cannes, having expanded its remit beyond experiential exhibition to include distribution.
“We’ve worked in exhibition for so long, there’s a lot of room and appetite for audiences wanting to have experiences with films. We’re excited to be seeing how we can combine the two, and do something that’s not been done before,” said Teanne Andrews, who founded the company alongside husband Anthony Andrews 10 years ago, having previously worked in community arts and marketing respectively before moving into film.
The organisation’s first screening was of Coming To America, and has since hosted sold-out events including the first UK public screening of Black Panther in 2018; a ‘Spike Is 60’ festival attended by Spike Lee himself (Lee reached out to them to connect for the event); a preview of Netflix’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery attended by actor Janelle Monae; plus free preview screenings of Alice Diop’s Saint Omer.
We Are Parable has plans to distribute at least one to two titles per year, working directly with producers and directors in the positioning of its films, and is on the prowl for titles at Cannes.
They have also just received funding from the recent round of UK Global Screen Fund awards, to put towards key hires (they are currently the only two full-time members of staff, with additional part-time support from Carmen Thompson and Laura Stratford) to help develop its international film distribution strategy for films made by Black British talent in international markets, such as Jamaica, Kenya, Trinidad and Tobago and North America.
A further success for the company has been a partnership with Channel 4 for mentoring and training programme Momentum, helping Black creatives get into the screen sectors across the UK. This year Momentum returns for its second run, helping progress the careers in cities including Leeds, London, Bristol, Glasgow and Birmingham, and will also expand across Scotland and the Midlands this year.
After the success of its 10-year anniversary celebration in April, Experience Over Everything, the duo is also looking to turn the event into an annual festival. “It was a celebration of everything we do,” said Anthony Andrews. “Scaling that and turning it into something that is a staple in the festival calendar is something we are certainly interested in.”
And the proudest achievement from the past 10 years? “Showing that this could be a sustainable business,” he added. “It started off as an idea we had on our sofas, to think of that time to where we are now, going to international festivals and making it an actual career is something I’m extremely proud of. We’ve been able to build it from not having film backgrounds and much connection to the film industry. It fills me with an immense sense of pride.”
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