Programmed by Melissa Lyde
Positioned as a counter-narrative to a celebration of the 250th founding of the United States, Tidal Memory asks what it means to remember through water—where the “afterlives of slavery” continue to shape Black life, ecological systems, and the conditions we live within today. Considering the Atlantic Ocean and other bodies of water as living archives shaped by the Transatlantic Slave Trade, this series—curated by Alfreda’s Cinema—draws on the work of Christina Sharpe to explore how histories of forced migration, extraction, and loss remain materially present in the environment.
Positioned as a counter-narrative to a celebration of the 250th founding of the United States, Tidal Memory asks what it means to remember through water—where the “afterlives of slavery” continue to shape Black life, ecological systems, and the conditions we live within today. Considering the Atlantic Ocean and other bodies of water as living archives shaped by the Transatlantic Slave Trade, this series—curated by Alfreda’s Cinema—draws on the work of Christina Sharpe to explore how histories of forced migration, extraction, and loss remain materially present in the environment.
Leadership support for
BAM’s strategic initiatives provided by:
Leadership support for
BAM Access Programs provided by
the Jerome L. Greene Foundation
Leadership support for
BAM programming provided by:
Leadership support for
BAM Film provided by
The Thompson Family Foundation
Major support for programs in
the Lepercq Cinema is provided by
The Lepercq Charitable Foundation
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FilmThe Island of Saint Matthews
Jul 24—27, 2026
The Island of Saint Matthews
Jul 24—27, 2026When Kevin Jerome Everson’s inquiry about family photos reveals a lost history, he travels to a small Mississippi town to uncover how his familial record vanished. -
FilmSankofa
Jul 24—30, 2026
Sankofa
Jul 24—30, 2026An American model in Ghana is transported back in time to experience the agony of her ancestors in this powerful reminder of the importance of keeping your familial history close. -
FilmBLKNWS: Terms & Conditions
Jul 24—29, 2026
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions
Jul 24—29, 2026The culmination of a video installation turned film project, this multidimensional work of vision and ambition offers an alternately riotous and meditative compendium of the Black experience. -
FilmSweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song
Jul 24—27, 2026
Sweet Sweetback’s Baadasssss Song
Jul 24—27, 2026Deemed by Huey P. Newton “the first truly revolutionary Black film made,” Peebles' landmark 1971 film follows a Black male prostitute on the run after saving a Black Panther from racist cops. -
FilmBeloved
Sat, Jul 25, 2026
Beloved
Sat, Jul 25, 2026Based on Toni Morrison’s 1987 novel, Demme’s Gothic horror take on one of contemporary literature’s most enduring stories follows a formerly enslaved woman plagued by a poltergeist and revisited by a reincarnated daughter. -
FilmTestament
Jun 25—Jul 28, 2026
Testament
Jun 25—Jul 28, 2026After two decades of exile, government minister-turned-journalist Abena returns to her native country to interview director Werner Herzog, only to instead reckon with her political past through this fragmented, poetic film. -
FilmAll Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
Jul 25—28, 2026
All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt
Jul 25—28, 2026With minimal dialogue and breathtaking cinematography from Jomo Fray (Nickel Boys), writer-director Raven Jackson’s feature debut weaves through love and loss in a stunning dedication to the experience of being alive. -
FilmPutney Swope
Jul 25—30, 2026
Putney Swope
Jul 25—30, 2026The only Black man on an ad firm’s board finds himself the unlikely head of the company in this biting (and prescient) corporate satire. -
FilmWhen the Levees Broke: A Requiem In Four Acts
Sun, Jul 26, 2026
When the Levees Broke: A Requiem In Four Acts
Sun, Jul 26, 2026Released a year after Hurricane Katrina, Spike Lee’s award-winning documentary comprises a series of interviews and news excerpts recounting the devastation of New Orleans and the critical mishandling of its aftermath. -
FilmStormy Weather
Jul 26—30, 2026
Stormy Weather
Jul 26—30, 2026An aspiring dancer courts a popular singer in this proverbial who’s who of legendary African American early Hollywood royalty, from Lena Horne and Bill Robinson to Cab Calloway, Fats Waller, and the magnetic Nicholas Brothers. -
FilmSounder
Jul 26—29, 2026
Sounder
Jul 26—29, 2026Ritt’s 1972 historical drama follows the Morgans, a Black sharecropper family in Louisiana, struggling in the aftermath of their patriarch’s imprisonment. -
FilmShorts Program 1
Mon, Jul 27, 2026
Shorts Program 1
Mon, Jul 27, 2026From Zora Neale Hurston's early documentation of Southern Black life to Oliver Franklin's search for Marcus Garvey and more, this collection of shorts journeys through Black memory, spirituality, and self-discovery. -
FilmShorts Program 2
Tue, Jul 28, 2026
Shorts Program 2
Tue, Jul 28, 2026Through metaphorical and material rituals—in the woods, anointed with water, on the front lines, or in the downpour of rain—these short films meditate on the experience of contemporary Black womanhood. -
FilmOff the Pig + Black Panthers
Wed, Jul 29, 2026
Off the Pig + Black Panthers
Wed, Jul 29, 2026Shown in celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Black Panther Party’s founding, these two shorts—one by Agnés Varda and the other from the Newsreel collective—offer an opportunity to hear directly from the Party.
