INSIDE THE AMERICAN BLACK FILM FESTIVAL 2024
For 14 years Cadillac has been the proud sponsor of the American Black Film Festival. A Festival that stands as the premier event empowering artists and highlighting diverse entertainment. ABFF unites global enthusiasts of culture, industry leaders, and creators for five days of screenings, talks, and essential networking. All held live in South Beach from June 12-16. This year’s festival delivered an unforgettable electric experience.
TRAVEL, STYLE, STORYTELLING:
JESSICA NABONGO
Jessica Nabongo, an icon in her own right, lives a lifestyle of luxury and aspiration. She became a moment of inspiration and captivation at the Cadillac Lounge during the American Black Film Festival. With a rich history with Cadillac that stems from her childhood upbringing in Detroit to her international travels today, Jessica embodies what it means to "be bold" and "be iconic. Fresh off your Parisian adventure with Cadillac for the OPTIQ reveal, a car that evokes a sense of optimism she took the stage at ABFF to share insights on achieving dreams and exploring life beyond limitations
MUSIC IN MOTION
Music is integral to the core of the Cadillac experience. So, what better way to bring the energy of our vehicles to life than through an electrifying performance from two of today’s most innovative artists.
FEEL THE SPACE
Curated by Feel the Space, an emerging music and curation community that focuses on music and self-discovery through mindful experiences, the Cadillac Lounges hosted enchanting performances by beloved R&B artists Lucky Daye and Kirby.
Feel the Space exists to re-inspire a sacred connection to music and artists. This deeply personal connection lives within the ethos of the Cadillac experience from the first drive to your final destination.
Re-live their captivating performances below.
FEATURED ARTIST: LUCKY DAYE
FEATURED ARTIST: KIRBY
2024 ABFF BEST DIRECTOR RECIPIENT
COKE DANIELS
Coke Daniels is a veteran filmmaker who examines human truths with wildly entertaining narratives. Coke has written, produced and directed nine films over the past two decades, most notably, My Baby’s Daddy and Who Made The Potatoe Salad? His films have been distributed through FOX, Lionsgate, Miramax,THINKFilms, BET, Allblk, and E-One.
A champion of celebrating diversity, passion and the power of chasing your dreams, Coke’s work is centered around capturing stories of resilience and the spirit of the young Black entrepreneurs. His latest film premiered at this year’s ABFF in Miami taking home a grand prize as Best Director. Read the below interview to learn about his experience.
What does it mean to you to receive the Best Director Award at ABFF?
Winning was huge for me. I'm still floating, I felt like I won an Oscar. Cause it's from my people, my culture saying yes. And not only that, there was the best picture award, then there was the best director award and either one or both would have been great. But the fact that they pointed me out specifically as a director, was amazing to me because I started off as a writer and early on in my career a lot of studios, investors and production companies wouldn't give me an opportunity to direct. So the fact I was awarded best director just brought things full circle for me.
And on top of all that it was Cadillac sponsoring the award it was twofold.
I've owned five or six different Cadillacs over the years. Pretty much exclusively. I love Cadillac. It's luxury, its old school, it's hip hop, it's culture.
You mentioned that as a writer it was hard to break into being a director. What did you have to do to break in? What is your niche that set you on your own path to create your own lane, to get into this industry and to be seen?
Well, I started off as a hip hop artist.
I was in a group called Madkap. We were the first group signed to Loud/RCA records back in the early nineties.We dropped our debut album in 1993 and we performed and toured with the likes of: Tupac, Biggie, Wu Tang, Pharcyde and The Alkaholiks to name a few. So I was already well versed in writing rhymes and telling stories. However, when I transitioned into film, it took me a long time to really learn the art of visual storytelling because I was only a writer in the beginning. So, at first, all I cared about was the words in the script and the performance.
I didn't know anything about color palettes and camera movement and lighting for mood and different tricks, techniques, blocking and composition. Eventually I started learning all the tricks of the trade and just little by little got better and better. And I'm still learning, visual storytelling more so than just the words on the page.
At Cadillac, we always say, be bold, be undeniable, be iconic. After hearing your relationship to Cadillac, what is your BE____?
BE epic.. I believe that everybody should have a motivation for their art. People ask me all of the time, “what is your goal?” And my answer is always “to be considered amongst the greats.” You know, I want to be mentioned in the same sentence as Spike and Scorsese and Hitchcock.
Cadillac has always been a staple in our community. It's always been a fabric, when it comes to the way we drive vehicles. What does Cadillac mean as an American luxury brand to you?
Class, elegance, sophistication, culture, quality, reliability are definitely some things that come to mind. People tell me all the time that my car fits my character.
Something about when you pull up in that Cadillac, it just sets the stage when you get out. And when you're going to a meeting or you're showing up to set, it lets people know the quality of the person that they're dealing with. I just love Cadillacs and what they represent and, you know they represent me.
