In this installment of our Grapes on a Vine Spotlight, we will feature BlackFilm.com and head movie critic, Wilson Morales. Established in 1998, BlackFilm.com is an online resource which links the Black film community while cultivating national and international audiences interested in their work. This site provides a forum for filmmakers, scholars and organizations to present information and promote artistic expression.
With this exciting opportunity to interview Wilson Morales, we got a chance to take an in-depth look on BlackFilm.com, its contribution to Black Hollywood and Morales’ own take on Black Hollywood.
A graduate of Cornell University and an avid filmgoer, Morales is not only the website editor for Blackfilm.com, but he also writes reviews and conducts interviews with producers, directors, and actors. He is also the film blogger on AOL Blackvoices under the column ‘It’s All Reel.’ On TV, he served as executive producer and film critic for Audrey’s Whirl, a film show hosted by Audrey Bernard that featured reviews and commentary on films and the industry. On WBAI Radio (99.5 FM) in New York, Wilson co-produced film segments, with Mike Sargent, and was be heard on REEL WORLD, which focuses on the music in films as well as interviews and reviews.
In 2003, Morales was cited as one of the Top 100 New Yorkers of the year by the local newspaper, the New York Resident, for his work in broadcast media and on the internet.
Wilson is also the President of the African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA) and a member of the Online Film Critics Society (OFCS) and Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA).
Known as a “deep well of information” when it comes to the world of movies, Morales came on board with Blackfilm.com in late 1998. With seeing the need to get Black Hollywood into the limelight, he liked the concept of Blackfilm.com. Morales explained, “The initial concept was to start a site for Black filmmakers, actors, and talent whose work may be overlooked by others in the mainstream world. Its focus was to showcase the efforts of these talented individuals whether it is on the screen, behind the scene, and festivals where many films vie for attention.”
BlackFilm.com provides forums for the community to discuss Hollywood and actors/actresses, which Morales sees as valuable to Black Hollywood and its viewers. As new black talent arises and more films come to the screen, Morales feels that Black Hollywood has the opportunity to improve each year and hopes that with help from BlackFilm.com, Black Hollywood will begin to get the credit it is due. “We want to provide attention to all, as much as we can, that continue to work in the business but go unnoticed. With many media outlets folding in the print and TV world, and writers and producers losing their jobs, it’s up to us and others to hold the fort and provide the forum for the unnoticed to be heard. We rather be the light that starts something than get on the bandwagon after a celebrity receives worldwide attention,” says Morales.
