Darol Olu Kae joins us to present a trilogy of short films that craft lyrical evocations of Black life onscreen, connecting intimate moments with broader collective experiences. A filmmaker born and based in Los Angeles, Kae draws inspiration from the city’s life force and its history as a laboratory for avant-garde jazz and the home of the LA Rebellion film movement. Kae has also collaborated with some of LA’s most notable contemporary makers as a creative researcher and writer for Kahlil Joseph and AG Rojas, and his feature film debut Without a Song is currently in development with Arthur Jafa's film production company, SunHaus.
Like these figures, Kae displays a singular touch in working with the form of film. His explorations of intergenerational bonds and memory take shape through an alchemical mix of scripted narrative, improvisation, joined with experimental, research, and archival approaches —all of which are reflected in tonight’s program. I ran from it and was still in It touches on personal experiences of familial loss, which find even deeper resonance when interwoven with found and archival imagery. Keeping Time, an homage to the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra, the music ensemble based for six decades in South Central Los Angeles, follows its plucky new bandleader as he seeks to honor his forbearers while establishing a new path forward. Presented in its world premiere, Blur is an atmospheric portrait brimming with feeling, which unfolds like a tone poem flitting between absence and presence, mourning and care.
The screening is followed by a conversation with the filmmaker, moderated by writer and curator Omar Berrada.
i ran from it and was still in it. 2020. 11 min.
Keeping Time. 2023. With Mekala Session, Michael Session, Maia, Fundi Legohn, Roberto Miranda. 32 min.
Blur. 2025. With Michael Rowles, Jacqueline Frazier, Kamara McDaniel, James Okoye. 20 min. World premiere.