Black Experience On Xfinity Offers $1 Million In Grants To Emerging Black Filmmakers In Celebration Of Its One Year Anniversary
Comcast NBCUniversal is celebrating the one-year anniversary of Black Experience on Xfinity by announcing plans to offer $1M in the form of ten $100K grants to emerging Black filmmakers.
Home to the largest curated collection of independent Black film collection on demand, Black Experience on Xfinity features content from many of Xfinity’s existing network partners, while investing millions of dollars in emerging talent from the top Black film festivals. Curated by industry leaders, the channel is the only one of its kind endorsed by African American Film Critics Association (AAFCA), the world’s largest group of Black film critics that gives annual awards for excellence in film and television.
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“The launch of Black Experience on Xfinity has been a major investment in the Black creative community and one of the many ways we are leveraging the scale and reach of our platforms to amplify voices that need to be heard,” said Keesha Boyd, Executive Director, Multicultural Video & Entertainment, Xfinity Consumer Services. “In recent years, we have expanded our offering of Black programming to millions of additional Xfinity customers. The Black Experience Channel on Xfinity allows us to shine a spotlight on our existing content partners, while also investing in and distributing original programming from emerging Black content creators and talent.”
Black Experience uniquely blends programming from across the Xfinity content catalog, spanning networks, free and ad-supported video streaming services, streaming music providers and more. Customers are able to choose from a selection of sample content from existing partners like TVOne, Cleo, AspireTV, REVOLT, Afro, KweliTV, The Africa Channel, BET, BET Her, Impact, Up Faith & Family and OWN, and more, which has allowed these partners to reach millions of new viewers. Xfinity subscribers also have access to all-new, premiere content by new and up-and-coming Black content creators, available only to Xfinity customers included with their service.
Since its launch, Black Experience on Xfinity has funded more than 25 Black creators and organizations on and off screen, and in 2021, more than three million viewers watched over 11 million hours of content on Black Experience.
“The African American Film Critics Association is proud to partner for a second year with the Black Experience Channel on Xfinity. Black stories are very important and through our relationship with Black Experience on Xfinity, we have been able to introduce content creators and talent, both in front and behind the camera, to Xfinity’s vast audience of subscribers. AAFCA looks forward to its expanded relationship with Xfinity this year that includes the 2022 AAFCA Film Awards and the 2022 AAFCA TV Honors, plus our summer screening series and short film exhibitions centering on underrepresented creators,” shared Gil Robertson IV, CEO, African American Film Critics Association.
Apply for grants here at www.xfinityblackexperience.com
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