This weekend there will be a free screening of the acclaimed new movie, “Origin,” written and directed by Ava DuVernay, at the Cinema Café Chester on Sunday, Feb. 4. The screening in Chester is being hosted by Richmond’s Afrikana Independent Film Festival with partners VPM and The Richmond Forum. The organizers are not announcing the time of the screening but ask that interested participants pre-register at the Afrikana Film Festival site starting Thursday, Feb. 1 and follow their Instagram and Facebook for updates.
The movie is based on the book, “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents,” by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Isabel Wilkerson. The drama tells the story of the formation of the book, as the author, played by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, explores racism in the United States in the wake of the shooting of Trayvon Martin, while also dealing with her own personal tragedies. DuVernay previously told CNN that “she wanted [the movie] to be released ahead of the 2024 election to spark conversations about the roots of division in the U.S.”
“I think bringing ‘Origin’ to Richmond audiences is pivotal not only because of its beautiful interpretation of Isabel Wilkerson’s poignant bestselling book, but because it also serves as a timely catalyst for necessary conversations about race, class, and its societal function, both locally and globally,” says Enjoli Moon, founder of the Afrikana Film Festival.
Moon tells Style that she had the opportunity to see “Origin” and meet DuVernay in Washington, DC when she was hosted by the Department of Diversity Equity and Inclusion for the U.S. House of Representatives. Moon’s sister, Dr. Sesha Joi Moon, serves as the department’s director, appointed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in 2022; last year, she was featured in Style Weekly’s “Top 40 under 40” issue. Disclosure: Enjoli Moon also serves on the board of VPM, which owns Style Weekly.
Since opening in late January, “Origin” has earned glowing reviews from national critics, with The New York Times’ Manhola Dargis calling it “audacious” and “ambitious.” The movie did not receive any Oscar nods this year, but it was selected to compete for the Golden Lion at the 80th annual Venice International Film Festival.
While she was excited for the film’s national release, Enjoli says that initially, the movie wasn’t slated to come to the Richmond area. But after working with DuVernay’s “amazing team at ARRAY and Neon,” they not only found a way to bring the movie to screens throughout Richmond but to make this free, community-screening possible.
“For me, being able to support Isabel, a Black woman author and Ava, a Black woman filmmaker who chose to make this film independently, outside of the traditional studio system, is in full alignment with Afrikana’s mission as Virginia’s only Black-woman-owned and Black-narrative focused independent film festival,” Moon says.
The Moon sisters are also known for powering the JXN Project, a “research-based, reparative, historic preservation nonprofit” that started as a way of recognizing Jackson Ward, the nation’s first historically registered Black urban neighborhood.
As “Origin” approaches its closing weekend, Moon says that Afrikana, along with their partners VPM and The Richmond Forum, “look forward to bringing our city together to support this important piece of independent cinema.”
