Bionic Buzz® covered the red carpet of 7th Annual Micheaux Film Festival in Culver City, CA. It’s signature Gold Night: Young Hollywood Party at One Culver, a glittering celebration of the next generation of talent and visionary artists redefining Hollywood. Each year, the event honors recipients of the Sidney Poitier Emerging Luminary Awards, recognizing creators who embody the festival’s mission to celebrate, empower, and elevate diverse voices in film and television.
This year’s honorees included Tosin Morohunfola (Run the World, Black Lightning), Gail Bean (Snowfall, P-Valley), Adriyan Rae (Chicago Fire, The Game), Shanice Shantay (The Chi, It’s Dorothy! — which premiered at the festival), and Mike Merrill (The Black Hamptons, All American), each recognized for carving their own paths while paving the way for others to follow.
Capturing the spirit of Gold Night – connection, recognition, and golden-era glamour – the celebration marked the perfect finale to four days of screenings, panels, and events spotlighting multicultural storytelling and the creative voices shaping the future of entertainment.
Red carpet interviews with Sabiyha Prince Ph.D (Anthropologist / Director – Diminished Returns), Cemi F. Bennett (Executive Producer – Diminished Returns), Afia Serena Nathaniel (Director / Writer / Producer – Don’t Be Late, Myra), Rodrigo Moreno-Fernandez (Director / Writer / Producer – El Lloron), Raquel Victor (Daughter of Actress Renee Victor – El Lloron), Havilah Malone (Author / Actress – I’m in Love, NCIS: New Orleans), Vincent Washington (Actor – Young King, Hollywood Grit, Paint), Bryant T. Griffin (Writer / Director – Young King), Amy Rutledge (Actress – Spam Risk, Rent-A-Pal, Eyes of the Dead), Krystina Bailey Brawer (Actress – Beyond the Gates, Blue Bloods, Weird City), Deborah Puette (Writer / Director – Such a Pretty Girl), Sarah Drew (Actress – Such a Pretty Girl), Rachel Stander (Producer – Such a Pretty Girl), Tiffany Thomas (Producer – Legends), Sean Anthony Baker (Actor – Father Time), Eiland Phoenix Ade (Actor – Father Time), Tiffany Jackman (Director / Writer – I Hate My Love Life), Daphnique Springs (Actress – I Hate My Love Life), Orion Phillips II (DP / Editor / Actor – I Hate My Love Life), Paula Spencer (Associate Producer / AD – I Hate My Love Life), Aqeel Quinn (Stage Left, God Right), Nia Watenza (Producer – I Hate My Love Life), Johnny LaVeie (Writer / Director – Queeriosity: A Documentary), Ken Gregory Writer / Director / Producer – Becoming Sidney), Brie Zepeda (Writer / Director – La Bala), Lila McLaughlin (Writer / Director / Producer – Don’t Let Them Out), Natalie Camou (Director – #1 BAD DAD), Liliana Bonilla (Actress – #1 BAD DAD), Kyle Selby (Writer – #1 BAD DAD), Keren Southall (Actress – I Thought You’d Never Ask), Jamal Trulove (Writer / Director – I Thought You’d Never Ask), Tadashii (Music Artist / Podcast Host), Wubetu Shimelash (Cinematographer – Shepard’s Calling, Unfinished), The Angel (Composer – Lives Beyound Motion), Sundeep Morrison (Actor – Flight 182), Rippen Sindher (Writer / Director – Flight 182), Carrington Walsh (Director / Writer / Producer – Let the Myth Be), Raphael Leland-Cox (Composer – Let the Myth Be), Ajima Cole (Queen Ajima) (Writer / Co-Director / Actress), Krystal Knight (Writer / Director / Producer – The Debt), Parneille Walker (Writer / Director – Love is Blind), Kenneth L. Johnson (Artistry in Sound – Black Lighting, Ballers), Larry Namer (Founder of E! Entertainment Network), Ronnie Root (Actress / Producer – Don’t Let Them Out), Shanice Shantay (Actress – It’s Dorothy, Perfect Harmony), Jeffrey McHale (Director / Editor /Writer – It’s Dorothy, You Don’t Nomi), Maya Jenkins (Maya J) (Actress / Music Artist – Muted, Famous in Love), Frank Adkinson and Blue Kimble (Viral Productions – Producers), Gita Dorothy Morena (Great-Grandaughter of L. Frank Baum of Wizard of Oz), Queen Love (Writer / Director / Producer – Oshun), Terry Dawson (Writer / Director – The ReWrite), Crystal Gix (Actress – Take the Note, The Debt), Kyle Sykes (Writer / Director – Negro League Nights), Jenelle Lynn Randall (Actress – Law & Order, Starfield, Miss Governor), and Candice Vernon (Writer / Director – 117 Years of Movie Bullshit).
Mike Merrill, Shanice Shantay, Gail Bean, Tosin Morohunfola, Adriyan Rae