The Urbanworld Film Festival and Innovation Summit will present the powerful documentary The Honorable Shyne as the highlight and finale of the annual event.

The film captures the extraordinary, unusual transformation of Moses “Shyne” Barrow, the Grammy Award-winning artist who from rap star to a respected politician. Barrow’s story will be told in an exclusive Q&A following the screening.

The festival returns to New York City from November 13-17 and will continue a tradition of celebrating diverse voices and unique narratives. HBO will also celebrate 28 years as a founding partner.

Regal Union Square will host screenings from international filmmakers, while the Urbanworld Innovation Summit will kick off the festival on opening day at Lincoln Center’s Elinor Bunin Munroe Film Center.

The summit provides a space for creators to explore the changing landscape of digital content delivery, narrative art, and emerging technology.

“We are honored to present films and projects from over 15 countries, reflecting the diversity and depth of human experience,” Karen McMullen, Urbanworld Film Festival director, said.

Additional highlights include the screenings of Albany Road, starring Lynn Whitfield and Renée Elise Goldsberry, and Brand New, Denzel Whitaker’s directorial debut with co-director Yuki Maekawa-Ledbetter. Directors Coodie and Chike will also lead a “Clips and Conversation” session, offering insights into their cultural influence as filmmakers.

The five-day festival offers screenings, discussions, and even live performances. ESPN Films will present a breaking showcase.

For more, go to UrbanWorld: urbanworld.org

Below is the full slate of UrbanWorld 2024:

CONFIRMED PARTNERS: 

Founding Partner: HBO  

Prestige Partner: Warner Bros. Discovery  

Supporting: Comcast NBCUniversal, MoviePass, The New York State Council on the Arts  

Industry: Motion Picture Association, Roku, The Handy Foundation, Walt Disney Studios, ESPN Films, Andscape, Hulu, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Amazon MGM Studios

2024 URBANWORLD FILM FESTIVAL SLATE: 

SPOTLIGHT FEATURES:  

• Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios) starring Jharrel Jerome, Bobby Cannavale, Michael Peña, Mykelti Williamson with Don Cheadle, and Jennifer Lopez
• It Was All a Dream, Directed by Dream Hampton, following the early days of hip-hop and featuring Biggie Smalls, Method Man, and Ice-T  
• Breakin’ on the One (ESPN Films)

SHORT FILM HIGHLIGHTS:  

• Fannie, starring Aunjanue Ellis, re-creating Fannie Lou Hammer’s famous speech
• Criminal, Directed by Robe Imbriano, with a live music performance by the film’s collaborators Stew & Heidi  
• It Just Happened, starring Denzel Whitaker, a short comedic film  
• The Brown Dog, an animated short featuring the voice talents of the late Michael K. Williams and Steve Buscemi, Directed by Nadia Hallgren and Jamie-James Medina  

CLIPS AND CONVERSATION: 

• Coodie & Chike, award-winning filmmakers, and directors are known for their compelling documentaries and music videos, including the critically acclaimed Jeen-yuhs: A Kanye Trilogy 

US NARRATIVE FEATURES: 

• Albany Road, Director, Michael Swanson                                                    
• Freight, Director, J. Alphonse Nicholson

WORLD NARRATIVE FEATURES: 

• Hello Spring (China) Director, Lanjua Ma
• The Battle (Brazil) Director, Vera Egito
• To a Land Unknown (UK), Director, Mahdi Fleifel

DOCUMENTARY FEATURES:

• Family Tree Director, Jennifer MacArthur 
• Paint Me a Road Out of Here Director, Catherine Gund
• Singing Back the Buffalo Director, Tasha Hubbard
• Songs from the Hole Director, Contessa Gayles

US SHORT NARRATIVE FILMS:

• At Night, Director, Zoe Simone
• August & Ebony, Director, Sunyin Zhang
• Bloomed In The Water, Director, Joanne Mony Park
• Border Hopper, Director, Nico Casavechia
• Brand New, Co-Directors, Quincy Ledbetter and Denzel Whitaker
• Chimera, Director, Kryzz Gautier
• Chocolate with Sprinkles, Director, Huriyyah Muhammad
• drawn, Director, Claro de los Reyes
• Echoes of Pomegranate, Director, Alex Bijan Zandi
• Fannie, Director, Christine Swanson
• In the Fold, Director, Manuel Del Valle
• It Just Happened Director, Steven Bennett
• Jamila, Director,  Julia Freij
• Last Hoorah at G-Baby’s, Director,  DeeDee Casmir
• Leave On High, Director, Javier Ortega, Andrew Slane
• Marcel’s Piñata, Director, Adrian B. Herrera
• Nwa (Black), Director, Hans Augustave
• Rites of Passage, Director, Grant Housley
• Side Roads, Director, Alvaro Nunez Sechi
• Tender Thoughts, Anndi Jinelle Liggett
• Terminally Ill, Director, Chris Cole
• The Adventures of Robin Hood, Director, Monica Moore-Suriyage
• Thomasville, Director, Alex Woodruff
• Trending, Director, Felix Martiz
• When Winter Comes, Director, Yuan Yuan

WORLD SHORT NARRATIVE FILMS:

• Dawn Every Day,(Egypt) Director, Amir Youssef
• Doris, (Ghana) Director, Edem Dotse
• Ebb & Flow, (Lebanon) Director, Nay Tabbara
• F**k Sisterhood, (France) Director, Gael Barboza
• Future is Panorama, (Syrian Arab Republic) Director, Muschirf Shekh Zeyn
• If We Met Now, (Canada) Director, Halen King
• My Son Went Quiet, (Canada) Director, Ian Singh Bawa
• Son, (Iran) Director, Sama Hosseinpuor
• The Backway, (UK) Director, Cherno Jagne
• The Cascade, (Mexico) Director, Pablo Delgado Sanchez

SHORT DOCUMENTARY FILMS:

• A Family Portrait, Queens, Director, Billy Silva
• A Race in the Sun, Director, K. Nicole Mills
• Betye Saar: Drifting Toward Twilight, Director, Kyle Provencio Reingold
• Complexion, Director, Toko Shiki
• Criminal, Director, Robe Imbriano
• El Regresso (The Return) Director, Samantha Ramirez
• Fenice, Director, Sterling Hampton IV
• Forget-Me-Not, Director, Tamika R. Guyishard
• Simi, Director, Maria Mayo
• The Afro Mexpats, Director, Ebony Marie Bailey
• The Archive: Queer Nigerians, Director, Simisolaoluwa Akande
• The Can Mas Eshtete, Director, Laura Chechoway
• What Were You Meant For, Director, Kevin Anthony Brooks
• When There Are No Words, Director,  Gabriella Canal

ANIMATION:

• Baigal Nuur – Lake Baikal, Director, Alisi Telengut
• Dodo, Director, Yi Luo
• Pacemaker, Directors,  Brian Vincent Rhodes, Christopher Lennertz
• Tehran is Ours, Director, Hamideh Azimi
• The Brown Dog, Director, Nadia Hallgren, Jamie-James Median

YOUNG CREATORS:

• Ayo, Check Up! Director, Natan Xia
• Frog Jumping, Director, Ian Linn
• Goodbye Train Director, Chioma Ejimofo
• Moon in the Water, Director, Jingwen Fang
• Primero, Sueño Director, Andrés Lira
• Sunday in August, Director, Troy Charbonnet

SCREENPLAYS:

• En Root, writer Rashmi Singh
• Fuego (2024), writer Edwin FrankO
• If I Die in America, writer Ward Kamel
• Kevin writers Carmus Johnson, Shannon Walsh & Jack Gorman
• Spitting Fire, writer Angie Comer