TRENTON, NJ - Secretary of State Nina Mitchell Wells is proud to welcome the Newark Black Film Festival (NBFF) back to the State Museum in Trenton for a month-long celebration of African American cinema, running Thursday evenings June 25 through July 30, with all show times beginning at 6 p.m. Prior to each feature film, the State Museum will host a pre-screening reception at 5 p.m.

Running simultaneously at the Newark Museum (Wednesdays, 7 p.m., 6/24-7/29), admission to the 2009 Newark Black Film Festival is free to the public.

Now in its sixth year in Trenton, the Festival has proven one of most popular annual events in the Capital City, offering weekly presentations of unique and educational works chronicling varying aspects of the African American experience, all while providing an outlet for emerging filmmakers, writers, and directors to showcase their work to a mass audience.

As in years past, each presentation will feature an informative and insightful discussion by a unique array of producers, writers, and film historians, while offering separate presentations in youth cinema throughout afternoon hours, with show times beginning at 1 p.m. on Thursdays at the State Museum.

Made possible by a grant from Bank of America, the NBFF will celebrate its thirty-fifth year as the oldest running black film festival in the United States with the 15^th anniversary screening of Cosmic Sloop, the award-winning "Twilight Zone-inspired trilogy" that originally aired on HBO in 1994. Highlighting the evening will be a discussion by Warrington Hudlin, renowned producer, pioneering black filmmaker, founder of DVRepublic.org., and President of the Black Filmmaker Foundation (BFF). In addition to Cosmic Slop, Mr. Hudlin's credits include the feature films House Party, Boomerang, Bebe Kids, and the Starz/Encore television special Unstoppable, among others.

"To say I'm filled with excitement and anticipation for this year's Newark Black Film Festival at the State Museum would be an understatement," noted Secretary Wells. "We're all extremely grateful to Bank of America for their continued support, and the month-long collection of films we're offering the public this year is nothing short of extraordinary. And to have someone of Warrington Hudlin's unique stature join us for the opening night is icing on the cake - I couldn't think of a better way to launch the 2009 Festival here in Trenton."

For more information on the history of the Newark Black Film Festival, times, descriptions of the films and their filmmakers, and a list of keynote speakers, please visit www.newjerseystatemuseum.org and www.newarkmuseum.org., respectively.

For a description of this year's youth cinema offerings Thursday afternoons at the State Museum, also visit www.newjerseystatemuseum.org.

Schedule for the 2009 Newark Black Film Festival (note the 7/15 showing will be at the New Jersey Institute of Technology):

 Cosmic Slop

June 24           (Newark Museum)
June 25           (NJ State Museum)

This is My Africa

July 1              (Newark Museum)
July 2              (NJ State Museum)

Dreams Deferred: The Sakia Gunn Film Project

July 8              (Newark Museum)
July 9              (NJ State Museum) 

Medicine for Melancholy

July 15             (NJ Institute of Technology)
July 16             (NJ State Museum)

A Place Out of Time: The Bordentown School

July 22              (Newark Museum)
July 23              (NJ State Museum)

The Birth of a Nation (segments) & Within Our Gates

July 29              (Newark Museum)
July 30              (NJ State Museum)

To learn more about the diverse array of services and programs offered by the Department of State, visit www.state.nj.us/state.