'Two Black Boys In Paradise' Picks Up 2 More Awards

One of the most successful animated shorts on this year's festival circuits is Two Black Boys In Paradise. The beautifully made stop-motion film is based on a poem by Dean Atta (The Black Flamingo) and narrated by Jordan Stephens (from British Hip-hop duo Rizzle Kicks). In the week that the film officially made the Oscar long-list, it has picked up two more awards from prestigious festivals.

The film won Best Animated Film at Norwich Film Festival and Best Animation at HollyShorts London. The wins continue the short's incredible run of wins at festivals around the world, taking in screenings and nominations at over 60 festivals so far. Its collection of Awards so far includes top prizes at Portland Festival of Cinema, Big Fridge International Film Festival, the Hollywood Queer Short Film Festival, the Ealing Film Festival, the Oscar-qualifying Woodstock Film Festival in New York, the renowned London Breeze Film Festival and the BAFTA-qualifying festivals Thessaloniki Animation Festival, Encounters Film Festival and last week’s Manchester Animation Festival. The film has also been nominated for Best British Short at the British Independent Film Awards (BIFA).

Accepting the award at HollyShorts, Dean Atta, original poet and co-writer of the film said:"“HollyShorts is an incredible supporter of independent filmmakers, so I’m deeply honoured to pick up this award on behalf of the whole team.  Like my original poem, this film is rooted in real life experiences so to see audiences and juries embrace it so whole-heartedly means the world to us all.” 

Picking up the award in Norwich, producer Ben Jackson said, “Coming just days after winning Best British Short at Manchester Animation Festival, this marks a truly surreal few days for the TBBIP team.  We’d like to say a massive thank you to the Norwich Film Festival jury for this accolade which, as ever,  we dedicate to our wonderful cast, crew and supporters.”

The film was produced by Manchester-based One6th Animation and directed by Baz Sells. It follows two young black boys Eden and Dula on a journey to self-acceptance. Their love for each other and their refusal to hide it transports them to a paradise free from shame and judgement. Inspired by Atta's poem of the same name from his collection There Is (Still) Love Here, the film explores the intersection of sexuality and race and identity, exploring the realities of homophobia and racism, seen through a tender, hopeful lens.

Two Black Boys In Paradise is directed by Baz Sells and written by Baz Sells, Dean Atta and Ben Jackson. The film is produced by One6th Animation Studio, with support from the BFI Short Form Animation Fund, awarding National Lottery funding.  A nationwide initiative, the competitive fund offers ambitious animation filmmakers the chance to access a higher level of funding, which is rarely accessible to short-form productions.  The project also received support in the early stages from actor Sir Ian McKellen and Partizan Films.

Two Black Boys In Paradise is available to view in the UK on Channel 4.