A2BFF 2026 Brings Films of Social Justice, Equity & Community
TCB: The Toni Cade Bambara School of Organizing
is a biography of Toni Cade Bambara, who, with humor and insight, inspired a generation of artists to dedicate themselves to community empowerment. The film is structured as a series of lessons on cultural organizing, gleaned from Bambara’s life and shared by her friends, colleagues and students. Through archival footage, contemporary interviews, and scenes from community classrooms and organizing spaces, TCB situates Bambara’s legacy as a living blueprint for collective liberation.
Dir. Louis Massiah and Monica Henriquez
Are You A Librarian? Black Librarians and Freedom Through Literacy
a personal mission to bring forgotten and overlooked stories forward. It’s not just about honoring the past; it’s about inspiring a new generation to take up the mantle of literacy, freedom, and truth in an age where those very principles are under attack.
Dir. Rodney Freeman
Free Joan Little
tells the story of the 1975 groundbreaking case of Joan Little who was the first woman in U.S history to be acquitted for using deadly force to resist sexual assault.
Dir. Yoruba Richen
Nothing to See Here: Watts
Forced to sit together and watch each other’s lives, people with every reason to distrust one another must decide how their community will be seen—and whether they can agree on a shared version of the truth.
As personal histories collide, long-held assumptions begin to break down.
What emerges is not consensus, but recognition.
And when the filmmakers choose to screen the film for active gang leaders—many of them lifelong rivals—the project takes on real-world stakes.
What began as an attempt to understand a community becomes something far more uncertain—and far more consequential.
Nothing to See Here: Watts is a film created by the community—not about it—revealing what becomes possible when people see their enemies differently.
Produced by: Michael Soenen
WE KEEP US SAFE
features portraits of five activists in the 2020 NYC Black Lives Matter Movement. Illustrated through the work of 25 independent photographers & videographers, WE KEEP US SAFE provides personal journeys of activism in the height of the coronavirus pandemic. Each story highlights an activist, combining a mix of protest footage from photographs, videos, and interviews on the streets. The activists represent a Native American/African American bicyclist, a female Ethiopian teacher, a non-binary queer dancer, a female Trans leader, and an Afro-Dominican recent college graduate.
Dir. Shawn Angela Batey
Where's My Coffee Cup?
At 64 and still in prison, John must navigate trauma and aging in a
space that is not designed for a geriatric population. Like others, he faces the challenges of stairs, top bunks, food that is not made for human consumption, timely and adequate health care, and the everyday risks of violence and exploitation. John’s story is a call and a demand for compassion and justice.
Dir. Yehuda Sharim
