News of Bahrain
Lifestyle23 September 20212 min read

'Godfather of Black Cinema' Melvin Van Peebles dies at 89

Agencies | Manhattan The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com Veteran filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles has passed away at the age of 89. According to CNN, Melvin died at his home in Manhattan on Tuesday night. The news of his demise was announced by his family. "Dad knew that

Editorial Team Legacy

Published 23 September 2021, 8:00 · Updated 22:05

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'Godfather of Black Cinema' Melvin Van Peebles dies at 89

Agencies | Manhattan

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Veteran filmmaker Melvin Van Peebles has passed away at the age of 89.

According to CNN, Melvin died at his home in Manhattan on Tuesday night. The news of his demise was announced by his family.

"Dad knew that Black images matter. If a picture is worth a thousand words, what was a movie worth? We want to be the success we see, thus we need to see ourselves being free. True liberation did not mean imitating the colonizer's mentality. It meant appreciating the power, beauty and interconnectivity of all people," Melvin's son Mario Van Peebles said in a statement.

Melvin was popularly known as the godfather of modern Black cinema. He had helped champion a new wave of modern Black cinema in the 1970s -- especially with his films 'Watermelon Man' and 'Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song'.

Melvin also was a novelist, theatre impresario, songwriter, musician and painter.

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