Killer of Sheep (1977) by Charles Burnett
Thursday, February 6, 1986, 7:30 pm
The Films of Charles Burnett and Billy Woodberry
Celebrating Black Independent Cinema
Billy Woodbury will be present.
During the 1970s, Black filmmakers emerged as a significant voice in America, making films of a stridently non-commercial character. This week the Cinematheque will highlight the feature-films of Charles Burnett and Billy Woodbury, two of the most highly acclaimed Black filmmakers of this generation. Growing out of their experiences in the Watts area of Los Angeles, Burnett and Woodbury’s films employ non-professional actors and semi-documentary techniques in capturing aspects of Black urban life with a gritty authenticity.
Killer Of Sheep (1977) by Charles Burnett, 83 min. Set in Watts, Killer… focuses on the increasing depression and isolation of a black slaughter-house worker who must suspend his emotions to continue a job he finds repugnant, and then finds he has little sensitivity left for the family he works so hard to support.
Bless Their Little Hearts (1983) by Billy Woodberry, 85 min. Woodbury’s first film confronts a Watts family at a moment of crisis due to the strains of a husband’s long term unemployment. As the mother slowly realizes that she is in fact head of the household, her husband desperately seeks affirmation elsewhere.