Across the world, the film industry has come a long way in depicting authentic and diverse stories in the wide-reaching visual medium. In recent years, many of the top films, both critically and commercially, have featured a lot more diversity behind the scenes and in front of the camera.
For Black filmmakers, this push for more creatively diverse filmmaking has led to the acclaim and emergence of some of the biggest and most promising names in modern cinema. Conversely, the continued exposure of modern Black storytellers has propelled historians and film fanatics to search for work from older and non-modern Black filmmakers.
From Oscar Micheaux to Nia DiaCosta, Black directors have had a long career in filmmaking since the early days of cinema. So, in celebration of some of the best names in filmmaking, here are 10 of the best films directed by Black directors.
12The Watermelon Woman (1996)
Liberian-American creator Cheryl Dunye became the first openly lesbian black director to direct a feature film in 1996. The film, titledThe Watermelon Woman, is directed, written by, and stars Dunye in its central role as Cheryl, a black lesbian who works at a video store with her friend Tamara (Valerie Walker). Cheryl is also an aspiring filmmaker, and much of her journey throughout the film revolves around her romantic interactions with Diana (Guinevere Turner) and her development of a short film centered around the life of the fictional actress Fae Richards, a culmination of prolific black actresses like Hattie McDaniel and Louise Beavers.
According to a feature by theBritish Film Institute, Dunye chose to premise Cheryl’s filmmaking around Richards due to the film’s budgets limiting the access to archival footage and Dunye’s passion for detailing the stories of forgotten Black performers in the film industry.
Produced on a mere budget of $300,000 from a grant by the National Endowment of Arts,The Watermelon Womanhas become a highly regarded film due to its depictions of lesbian and black identities. The film has also gone on to amass critical acclaim, win various accolades at film festivals, be selected for preservation by the Library of Congress' National Film Registry in 2021, and be regarded as one of thebest movies from LGBTQ+ women directorsof all time.
11Creed (2015)
Fresh off the success of his highly profitable directorial debut,Fruitvale Station, American filmmaker Ryan Coogler took the boxing film scene by storm with his directed and co-writtenRockyseries spin-off movieCreed.
Released in 2015,Creedcenters on the son ofRocky’s antagonist Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers), Adonis “Donnie” Creed (Michael B. Jordan). Donnie plans to pursue a professional boxing career after spending time in a juvenile detention center and being adopted by his father’s widow, Mary Anne (Phylicia Rashād). to do so, Donnie seeks out the help of Rocky (Sylvester Stallone), who offers his expertise to the amateur boxer.
Creedbecame an instant success after its release, amassing $173.6 million on an almost $40 million budget. The film received audience and critical acclaim, earning a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes and an A score on CinemaScore, and spawned its own sequels, released in 2018 and 2023. Ryan Coogler’s career also greatly benefited, as he went on to direct twoBlack Panthermovies for the Marvel Cinematic Universe which becamebox office successes.
10Love & Basketball (2000)
The late 1990s and early 2000s were considered aprime agefor authentic black romantic comedies depicted on the big screen with films such asLove Jones(1997),How Stella Got Her Groove Back(1998), andBrown Sugar(2002). Among this list of staple films is Gina Prince-Bythewood’s 2000 directorial debut,Love & Basketball.
Love & Basketballfollows the lives of two next-door neighbors, Monica Wright (Sanaa Lathan) and Quincy McCall (Omar Epps), as they pursue their basketball careers while also developing a romantic connection. The basketball drama was lauded by critics and fans upon release, with immense praise going to Prince-Bythewood’s uplifting presentation of its female lead protagonist. The film also grossed $27.7 million at the box office, received numerous accolades at the NAACP Image Awards and BET Awards, and will be remembered as a black classic.
9Daughters of the Dust (1991)
Julie Dash’s 1991 classicDaughters of the Dustbecame a history-making film after it became the first theatrically distributed film directed by an African-American woman. The film depicts an intimate look at three generations of Gullah women living off the Georgian coast in 1902. As the women prepare for their migration to the North, Dash vibrantly portrays life in this biographically inspired film.
Daughters of the Dustamassed critical acclaim upon its release, and became a cultural milestone for its lasting legacy of authentic black stories and propelling future female directors into the mainstream. In 2016, the film celebrated its 25th anniversary with a restored screening and became a source of inspiration for Beyoncé'sLemonadevisual album. Six years later, in 2022,Daughters of the Dustappeared as number 60 onSight and Sound’s Greatest Film of All Time list, further cementing its lasting legacy on the landscape of film.
8Moonlight (2015)
It is no secret thatMoonlight(2015) is among some of the best films of the modern era. The incredibly intimate film—centered around black masculinity, queer identities, and parenthood—received numerous accolades, including Best Picture at the 89th Academy Awards.
Moonlightis structurally unique since the story of the film’s central character, Chiron, is presented in three stages that tackle young adolescence, teenage years, and adulthood. The film follows Chiron’s life as he navigates his complex feelings with his childhood best friend, Kevin, and the complex relationships he has formed with the adults in his life.
Highly regarded with prominent critical acclaim and adorned in numerous accolades,Moonlighthas cemented itself as the first of many passionate films by Barry Jenkins.
7Get Out (2017)
Jordan Peele’s directorial debut film,Get Out(2017), is yet another modern film that has cemented itself among some of the greatest films of all time. The psychological horror film stars Daniel Kaluuya as Chris Washington, a young photographer who gets invited to his girlfriend’s family home to meet her parents. While interacting with the home and his girlfriend’s family, Chris uncovers deep secrets that put his life in jeopardy.
Get Outbecame a commercial success upon its release in theaters, amassing $255 million globally on a smaller budget of $4.5 million. The film went on to earn critical and audience acclaim, with major wins at the Academy Awards, Black Reel Awards, and NAACP Image Awards. Peele’s penned screenplay also ledGet Outto becomethe greatest screenplay of the 21st century so far, according to the Writer’s Guild Association.
6Friday (1995)
When it comes to Black cult classic films that have left a lasting legacy on the audience and American culture, no film comes close in comparison to the lasting impact of F. Gary Gray’s 1995 comedyFriday. Seen in many eyes of Black fans as animportant Black cult classic,Fridayfollows two buds, Craig Jones (Ice Cube) and Smokey (Chris Tucker), as they become involved with a local drug dealer and their neighborhood bully.
Fridayis full of iconic lines and memorable quotesthat have become a lasting legacy in popular culture. It is hard to find someone who has utilized the internet for a long time and have not come across one of the many comedic and signifying scenes from the film. Nevertheless, the lasting impact ofFridayin Black culture has led to the film becoming of the high regarded, more modern comedies.
Related:F. Gary Gray’s Films Ranked
5Black Girl (1966)
Black Girlis a 1966 French-Senegalese drama film directed and written by Ousmane Sembène. The film centers on Diouana (Mbissine Thérèse Diop), a young Senegalese woman who moves to France from Senegal to work as a nanny for a French couple. While Diouana is working under the guidance of the couple, her experience is not all she hoped it would be, and leads to her starting to question her life and situation in France.
Black Girlis historic, as many film scholars deem it to be one of the first Sub-Saharan African films with an African director to receive worldwide attention. Initially, the film was poorly received by American and other Western critics due to its slowness and depiction of its white characters. Over time, however, the film has been judged in new light, due to itsrestoration by the World Cinema Project, becoming a classic of global and worldwide cinema and receiving the critical acclaim it once deserved.
4Boyz n the Hood (1991)
The 1991 coming-of-age Black drama filmBoyz n the Hooddepicts the adventurous life of Cuba Gooding Jr.’s Tre Styles after he is sent to live with his father Furious (Laurence Fishburne) in South Central Los Angeles. With a supporting cast including the likes of Angela Bassett, Ice Cube, Nia Long, and Morris Chesnut, the hood crime film authentically depicts the emerging adolescent in a neighborhood surrounded by gang culture.
John Singleton’s written and directed masterpiece has failed to leave the minds of its viewers after developing a lasting legacy in modern culture. The film not only propelled the careers of some of its central cast, but also led Singleton to become the youngest person and first African American to ever be nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards.
Boyz n the Hoodhas left a culturally significant mark on black cinema, and its critical and commercial success prove it. Even though there are stillsecrets to uncoverin the behind-the-scenes of the film,Boyz n the Hoodis one of the first films many fans would consider a certified Black classic.
3Killer of Sheep (1978)
Unlike the other films on this list, 1978’sKiller of Sheepwas entirely directed, edited, produced, filmed, and written by American auteur Charles Burnett as his Masters of Fine Arts thesis at the UCLA School of Film. With a style akin to Italian neorealism,Killer of Sheepdepicts the culture of urban African-Americans in Watts, Los Angeles. Henry G. Sanders stars as Stan, a slaughterhouse worker whom the film follows.
WhileKiller of Sheeporiginally premiered in 1978, the struggles of securing music rights for the film led to its official release occurring in 2007 once official music rights were secured. Upon its first release, the film was met with critical acclaim, with many critics appreciating the unique approach to storytelling because the film has no central plot. Since then, the film continues to receive critical praise, placing high on many movie critic “best films” lists, and is regarded as one filmevery wannabe filmmaker needs to watch.
