***This film is available to watch both IN-PERSON AND ONLINE. Please read instructions below to know where to get the ticket for your screening of choice:
If you are interested in watching this film in-person at an indoor theatre at the Museum of Fine Arts - Boston, please purchase your ticket on Eventbrite here: http://bit.ly/roxfilmeventbrite.
If you're interested in watching this film remotely/online-only in your own home, please purchase your online screening ticket through the MFA website here: https://www.mfa.org/programs/series/the-roxbury-international-film-festival
Online Screening Info: Available to view 10 am on June 17 through 12 am on June 19.
In-Person Screening Location: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; The Museum will not be open as normal. Please enter through The Linde Family Wing Entrance on Museum Road and look for RoxFilm volunteers.
COVID-19 Safety Protocol: We are following the new MFA protocols which you can find here: www.mfa.org/visit. This includes no longer requiring masks but we highly encourage wearing masks for all. For additional caution, we are limiting the number of tickets available for in person screenings to allow for spacing between groups. We encourage you to wear your mask and any additional protection that makes you most comfortable. We are a mask-friendly festival.
A pre-recorded Q&A with Director Yoruba Richen + Documentary Filmmaker Suzanne Kay, daughter of Diahann Carroll who is featured in the film.
Directed by Yoruba Richen (USA, 2020, 113 min.). Digital.
How It Feels to Be Free takes an unprecedented look at the intersection of African American women artists, politics, and entertainment. Based on the book How It Feels to Be Free: Black Women Entertainers and the Civil Rights Movement by Ruth Feldstein, the films tells the story of how six trailblazing women—Lena Horne (the first Black woman signed to a major studio), Abbey Lincoln (the “Black Marilyn Monroe” turned protest singer and activist), Diahann Carroll (the first Black woman to both win a Tony Award and star in her own TV series in a role other than a maid), Nina Simone (the revolutionary musical prodigy), Cicely Tyson (the proud race woman who used her art as a form of protest), and Pam Grier (the first female action hero)—changed American culture through their films, fashion, music, and politics.