The Sound of Masks | Promo

Improvisational pianist and composer Thelonious Monk is among the 20th century’s most revered jazz luminaries. This film by Alain Gomis, features raw footage from an interview the artist gave to French state television in 1969. It shows Monk in the grip of a violent factory of stereotypes, offering an unfiltered glimpse at the racial indignities some artistic geniuses are asked to endure.

Mapiko is a traditional masked dance performed by the Makonde men of Northern Mozambique. Filmmaker Sara de Gouveia’s film follows Atanásio Nyusi, a compelling storyteller and legendary Mapiko dancer, taking us on a visually dramatic journey through Mozambique's past (including Mapiko’s role as a tool to challenge colonization during the Mozambican War of Independence) and its vibrant present.

Born into slavery in 1853, Bill Traylor spent most of his life working the land in rural Alabama. He began drawing and painting in his later years, often with found materials. This film, by Jeffrey Wolf and Daphne McWilliams, is a compelling narrative about a man who, despite the hardships of legalized racism, produced a body of work exhibited in today’s leading museums and collections worldwide.