You're invited to a free screening of The Watermelon Woman and a post-film discussion about the impact of the film and 90's independent American cinema with University of Utah Associate Professor Sarah E. S. Sinwell, moderated by RadioWest host Doug Fabrizio.
Thursday, May 18, 7 p.m.
Free event | Masks required | RSVP required
Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center
About the film: Presented as part of our Through the Lens series, which for 2022 features a collaboration with the University of Utah’s Department of Film and Media Arts to present an extended exploration of what many Film Lovers regard as the “Classic Films” in cinematic history
Screening of the 1996 New Queer Cinema & Independent film classic. The post-film conversation will ask the question “Why is this film a classic and who is it a classic for?”
The story of Cheryl, a twenty-something Black lesbian struggling to make a documentary about Fae Richards, a beautiful and elusive 1930s black film actress popularly known as The Watermelon Woman. While uncovering the meaning of Fae Richards’ life, Cheryl experiences a total upheaval in her personal life. Her love affair with Diana, a beautiful white woman, and her interactions with the gay and Black communities are subject to the comic yet biting criticism of her best friend Tamara Meanwhile, each answer Cheryl discovers about the Watermelon Woman evokes a flurry of new questions about herself and her future.