Is Hollywood’s New ‘Magical, Colorblind Past’ a Good Thing?

KQED's Forum

KQED

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.6 • 656 Ratings

🗓️ 9 May 2024

⏱️ 57 minutes

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Summary

Recent Hollywood films and TV shows have taken to presenting a “Magical Multiracial Past,” according to filmmaker Kabir Chibber in a recent New York Times Magazine article. It’s a past where “every race exists, cheerfully and seemingly as equals, in the same place at the same time. History becomes an emoji, its flesh tone changing as needed.” Some of the backlash to so-called colorblind casting has been outright racist. But some of the pushback has come from artists of color who feel uncomfortable with utopic depictions that erase the racism of past eras. As Chibber argues, “the problem, for viewers, isn’t wokeness run amok; it’s the incoherence of the world we are watching.” We’ll talk about the benefits and drawbacks of colorblind and color-conscious casting — and the uncomfortable truths it forces us to address. Guests: Kabir Chibber, writer and filmmaker Brandon David Wilson, writer; educator; filmmaker Maurice Emmanuel Parent, actor, director and professor of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies, Tufts University Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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1:29.1	I'm Mina Kim.
1:30.2	TV shows like Bridgeton or movies like Wonka portray a version of the past where race isn't an issue or even really remarked upon.
1:38.2	And Hollywood's impulse toward inclusivity and the practical benefit of more roles for non-white actors have been lauded.
1:45.0	But some artists of color worry that erasing the racism of the past has problematic implications,
1:51.0	the potential to obscure history.
1:54.0	This hour, we look at the benefits and drawbacks of so-called colorblind casting.
1:59.0	And hear from you, how would you like to see Hollywood handle race
2:02.4	in stories set in the past?
2:11.4	Welcome to Forum. I'm Mina Kin. Filmmaker Kabir Chibber has been struggling to enjoy films
	...

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