Black culture and Black storytellers are the focus of this North Texas film festival
As an actor, Desmond “Dehz” Donahue has been featured in multiple television shows and movies, including “American Crime,” “Carter High,” and Nate Parker’s “Birth of a Nation.”
He played a sex trafficker who was never caught in the movie “8 Days,” and it inspired him to create his own film.
His first film Mister Gates, for which he was the writer, director and executive producer, involves a sex trafficking story line. Real-estate mogul Christopher Gates becomes homeless after losing his family, only to discover a sinister connection in their deaths.
Donahue, who is from the Oak Cliff area of Dallas, is now able to tell stories with Dallas based talent. “Mister Gates” will be one of the dozens of films by Black filmmakers playing at the Denton Black Film Festival.
“There are talented people in the city that have a lot to say in DFW, and I’m just blessed to be a part of that group that is out here playing my role and doing my part to get out there,” Donahue said.
The Denton Black Film Festival returns for its 11th year and will take place in person at multiple venues from Jan. 22-26 and virtually from Jan. 26-Feb. 2.
There will be over 70 films screened, with the opening film being “The Spook Who Sat By The Door,” a 1973 movie that was pulled out of theaters over its depiction of racial tensions. The film will be shown Jan. 23 at Alamo Drafthouse and Jan. 24 at Texas Theater, with both screenings at 7 p.m.
The festival will also include panels and workshops, music, comedy, spoken word performance, a youth gaming tournament, and more.
Harry Eaddy and his wife Linda, who live in Denton and are involved in the arts community, provided the suggestion that got the film festival started after being inspired by the #OscarsSoWhite movement, which was a criticism of the lack of diversity at the 2015 Academy Awards. Harry Eaddy is the president of the Denton African American Scholarship Foundation Inc. and presented the idea of a film festival to the board of directors.
Th first festival had over 800 attendees, and last year there were 10,000 in person attendees, with 2,000 participating virtually.
Eaddy says the focus of the festival is to entertain, educate and inspire Black story tellers who have a desire to create stories of the struggles and the joys of the Black community. The festival is not just for film lovers but for people who want to be immersed in Black culture, including the arts, music, and poetry, Eaddy added.
“We share stories about Black culture, and we build community, so we want people to understand really more about our culture and our history, but we also want to build community by sharing that information,” Eaddy said.
Eaddy hopes to grow the festival so attendance is over 20,000 people and continue to build a multidisciplinary platform to share Black culture to the world.
Donahue’s goal is to be recognized in the film industry, win an Oscar and try to build his own film studio in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to help bring opportunities to talented people.
“It’s good to know who the Black filmmakers are, those that are out here in the city, that are making a difference and to learn what we’re doing that’s very unique ... ,” Donahue said. “So it’s just good to come and just to fellowship and get to know us filmmakers of color, and the things that we have on our road map.”
Film screenings will be at various locations between Jan. 22-26. Festival passes start at $42.49. Prices for individual events and screenings vary; some events are free. For more information on prices and schedule visit dentonbff.com/film-festival.
This story was originally published January 18, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
