Museum of the Moving Image launches special screening for Black History Month

Marion Williams in Eleven P.M. Photo courtesy of Kino Lorber.

Feb. 5, 2025 By Shane O’Brien

The Museum of the Moving Image (MoMI) has launched a new screening series in honor of Black History Month, providing digitally restored versions of films financed, produced, created and distributed by Black Americans in the early 20th century.

Pioneers of African American Cinema debuted at MoMI on Feb. 1 and runs through Feb. 23, studying how Black filmmakers were an essential part of the film landscape from the silent era through to the 1940s,

Kino Lorber’s collection provides insight into a “too-often unstudied and misunderstood” chapter of American history. It includes titles such as “Within Our Gates” and “Symbol of the Unconquered” by director Oscar Micheaux, “The Flying Ace” by director Richard E. Norman and “Eleven P.M.” by director Richard Maurice.

MoMI, located at 36-01 35th Ave. in Astoria, will also host community partner The Afrikan Poetry Theatre’s annual Black History Month Film Festival, which will feature a program of short films, discussions, and awards.

The program includes four short films directed by Black filmmakers, including the NAACP Image Award–-nominated “Chocolate with Sprinkles,” which follows a bickering couple given one day to work on their marriage. The program also includes the thriller “Shoot Films, Not People” and two informative documentaries: “Butterflies Jump Too” and “Dating in the Social Media Era.”

The film festival will begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22, and a networking event for all NYC-based filmmakers will take place at the museum at 1 p.m. on Feb. 15.

The museum will additionally host its annual “anti-tribute” to the Oscars in February, celebrating the films and figures who have “never won the little golden guy.”

“Snubbed Forever: Great Actors, No Nominations” will run from Feb. 1 through March 9. This year’s series will focus on iconic performers who have never received a single Academy Award nomination for acting.

More than a dozen films will be screened at MoMI as part of the series, including John Ford’s iconic “The Quiet Man”, Delmer Daves’ classic “3:10 to Yuma” and Roman Polanski’s celebrated “Rosemary’s Baby”.

The majority of films screened as part of the series will be screened in 35mm.

Leading into Valentine’s Day, MoMI continues with its Friday Date Night special offer, which includes admission for two guests, a complimentary coffee or drink for two at Mon Amour Cafe in the museum lobby and the option of attending the evening screening, available every Friday through Feb. 14. Tickets are available for the date night special for $50, with “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” and “An Officer and A Gentleman” set to be screened on Feb. 14.

Furthermore, MoMI has also announced the extension of Recording the Ride: The Rise of Street-Style Skate Videos, an exhibition honoring the 1990s era of DIY recordings and skater culture that was due to end on Jan. 26. The exhibition, which recognizes the era’s skate culture and explores the origins of the new media genre, will now be on display at the museum through March 2.

For a full list of screenings, exhibitions and events at MoMI, click here.