Cinema race card

Greg BRAXTON’S article on black filmmakers [“Next in Line,” March 30] was terrific. I am an aspiring writer-filmmaker and it is very difficult to compete with what the masses seem to want. However, it is not really that black people want only to watch the Madeas and the antics of Chris Tucker -- they succumb to the limited options given to them.

Tyler Perry is very talented and I applaud his success as well as that of Spike Lee who really paved the way for black writers and directors and gave black actors work. This is all admirable. However, have you ever wondered why actors such as Will Smith and Tucker attain such great success without being pulled into the “black movie” category?

It’s all about marketing. I believe that films with all-black casts, written and directed by black people, should be marketed to the masses. When you have segregated marketing criteria, no one benefits because people lose out on what can be a terrific learning experience.

I am attempting to market my own film into the mainstream audience while having a black heroine at its center. I am trying to relinquish all definitions of a “black movie” and just have a movie. Can this be done? I think so, but how much will I have to sacrifice or compromise to get studios to work with me?

Dawn Robinson

New York City