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Honolulu African American Film Festival 2025

February 6–March 2, 2025

The 14th Honolulu African American Film Festival presents films that celebrate Black excellence in art and justice. See 11 features from the US—and one from France—that highlight issues relevant to our past and present. 

The program is presented in collaboration with the Honolulu African American Film Festival committee: Daphne Barbee-Wooten, Ethan Caldwell, Akiemi Glenn, Tadia Rice, and Sandra Simms. 

MAJOR SUPPORT FROM
Robert and Jean Steele 

  • Opening Reception + Film: Luther: Never Too Much

    Thu Feb 6 6:00PM - 9:00PM
    The festival kicks off with a reception and the Hawai‘i premiere of the Luther Vandross documentary Luther: Never Too Much.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Thu Feb 6
    6:00PM - 9:00PM
    Tickets

  • Luther: Never Too Much

    Thu Feb 6 and Sun Mar 2
    Celebrating the life and work of iconic musical performer Luther Vandross, from childhood talent to worldwide fame.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Thu Feb 6
    and
    Sun Mar 2
    Dates

  • Dahomey

    Fri Feb 7 - Fri Feb 28
    Acclaimed French-Senegalese filmmaker Mati Diop's new film is a poetic documentary about the 2021 repatriation of 26 objects that France had looted from the kingdom of Dahomey (now Benin) in 1892.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Fri Feb 7
    -
    Fri Feb 28
    Dates

  • Following Harry

    Fri Feb 7 and Thu Feb 20
    Experience the powerful story of Harry Belafonte, the 96-year-old civil rights pioneer, in this intimate documentary about an inspiring agent of change.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Fri Feb 7
    and
    Thu Feb 20
    Dates

  • Kemba

    Sat Feb 8 2:00PM - 4:00PM
    Based on the true story of criminal justice reform advocate Kemba Smith, who fell in love with a drug kingpin as a college student and faced life-changing consequences.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sat Feb 8
    2:00PM - 4:00PM
    Tickets

  • Color Book

    Sat Feb 8 and Fri Feb 14
    This intimate portrait of a father navigating the experiences of raising a child with Down syndrome is a moving testament to resilience and love.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sat Feb 8
    and
    Fri Feb 14
    Dates

  • Family Tree

    Sun Feb 9 and Sat Feb 22
    In the American South, Black landowners fight to maintain their family legacy and create sustainable forests for generations to come.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sun Feb 9
    and
    Sat Feb 22
    Dates

  • How to Sue the Klan

    Thu Feb 13 and Fri Feb 14
    This documentary tells the story of how five Black women from Chattanooga used legal ingenuity to take on the Ku Klux Klan in a historic 1982 civil case.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Thu Feb 13
    and
    Fri Feb 14
    Dates

  • Oscar Micheaux: The Superhero of Black Filmmaking

    Sat Feb 15 2:00PM - 4:00PM
    A look at the life and work of Oscar Micheaux, a pioneer of the African-American film industry.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sat Feb 15
    2:00PM - 4:00PM
    Tickets

  • Murder in Harlem

    Sat Feb 15 7:00PM - 9:00PM
    Oscar Micheaux's powerful detective story is a still-relevant indictment of institutional racism in its depiction of a Black man wrongly accused of murder.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sat Feb 15
    7:00PM - 9:00PM
    Tickets

  • The Notorious Elinor Lee

    Sun Feb 16 2:00PM - 4:00PM
    Gangsters manipulate a woman to influence a boxer to throw a crucial fight in Oscar Micheaux's penultimate film production.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sun Feb 16
    2:00PM - 4:00PM
    Tickets

  • Songs from the Hole

    Sat Feb 22 and Fri Feb 28
    A documentary visual album, Songs from the Hole follows James “JJ '88” Jacobs through a musical opus of hip hop and soul.
    Honolulu Museum of Art
    Doris Duke Theatre
    Sat Feb 22
    and
    Fri Feb 28
    Dates
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