Beleza Negra
The film Beleza Negra follows five young women competing in the annual event in which Ilê Aiyê chooses its Carnival queen, using an Afro-centric notion of beauty.
With footage of their daily lives, dance rehearsals, and interactions with each other, the film shows the importance of the contest, with its close association with the African-originated religion of Candomblé, in reshaping the idea of what is beautiful in a society where African descendents constitute the majority of the population, but Eurocentric concepts of female beauty are pervasive.
In the event itself, the women, dressed in flowing African-style garments, gracefully perform traditional Afro-Brazilian dances to songs praising the beauty of black women.
The figure of the Deusa do Ébano (Ebony Goddess), a key visual element of a spectacle that creates an alternative view of black woman as beautiful, desirable, and talented, promotes social change at its most basic level: the individual sense of self.
Beleza Negra is current in post-production. The film has fiscal sponsorship from Film Arts Foundation. To contribute to this documentary, please visit Film Arts Foundationsit at www.filmarts.org.
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