Criterion Expands Black Film Focus 6 Years After 2020 Diversity Reckoning
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 22
Criterion Expands Black Film Focus 6 Years After 2020 Diversity Reckoning
2 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 22
Summary
Six years after a 2020 investigation found only four of Criterion’s 461 directors were African American, the company says Black cinema is now a sustained curatorial focus rather than an exception.
Criterion’s response included creating a curatorial director role and hiring Ashley Clark, alongside broader expansion of Black titles across its physical releases and streaming offerings.
99 DVD entries now appear in Criterion’s curated “Black Lives” online store section, spanning films such as Garrett Bradley’s “Time” and Charles Burnett’s “Killer of Sheep.”
Peter Becker, Criterion’s president, said the company came to see its prestige as carrying both responsibility and opportunity, though fuller streaming data remains unavailable because titles shift with rights agreements.