Navigating the white space of film as a Black critic with Amon Warmann

04/07/23 • 34 min

Amon Warmann is one of very few black male film critics in the UK, and despite having carved out an impressive career over the.past decade he can still struggle to be seen beyond his racial credentials. Amon reflects upon this in this weeks episode, along with how he found his voice in a decidedly white space, how lighthearted film chats on social media can get messy, and his frustrations with the repeated pushback against diverse casting. Our chat took place in summer 2022 and I date it, because he discusses his "BFI Greatest films of All Time" list which has since been made available online.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Previous Episode

Film's inability to do Disability with Cathy Reay

Whilst the push for better representation for women and people of colour has become more mainstream, the disabled community are yet to be included to the same degree. This matters hugely when it comes to cinema because of its long-standing problematic history when representing disability. From failing to cast disabled actors, to entrenched tropes where disability denotes evil or societal outsiders to be avoided, we've been drip-fed many taken-for-granted representations that need significant revision. After reading journalist and author Cathy Reay's recent review of the film Champions, which features a supporting cast of learning disabled actors, I was keen to chat with her and hear firsthand the many ways non-disabled critics and filmmakers are failing the disabled community.

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Next Episode

Onscreen Sex beyond the Male Gaze with Karen Krizanovich

Sex and the movies. It's a perfect combination, except when it isn't. #MeToo has prompted a realisation that onscreen depictions of sex need rethinking - especially when it comes to women. There's a wider understanding of the Male Gaze now, so how is it impacting the way we perceive and discuss female sex and nudity? And can we be more more careful about sex onscreen without losing the intended sexiness? As former sex columnist "Dear Karen" from the 90s, film critic and film production researcher Karen Krizanovich was my first port of call for an overview of onscreen sex and how we critics do - and don't - talk about it.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.