Actress Kerry Washington, who is currently serving as “festival ambassador” for the 14th annual Urbanworld Film Festival, is also stirring up a buzz on the web with the new trailer for the coming Tyler Perry film “For Colored Girls.”

The film, due out in November, is an adaptation of the Tony-nominated 1975 play “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf” by Ntozake Shange. The original stage play is poetic and multilayered–and thus a complete left-field turn for Perry, who is better known for churning out populist money-making vehicles that get slammed by critics for playing on stereotypes and going for cheap laughs and easy sentiment.

“For Colored Girls” has an all-star cast of actresses, including Washington, Janet Jackson, Whoopi Goldberg, Anika Noni Rose, Loretta Devine and others.

“I know it’s not fair, but I want to say you had to be there,” Washington says of working on the movie. “I’m hoping that when people see the movie, that’s how they feel. If you can imagine going to set and you see chairs that say Macy Gray, Janet Jackson, Phylicia Rashad, Whoopi Goldberg, Kimberly Elise, Thandie Newton. It was breathtaking. We actually kept taking pictures of our chairs because we were so excited to be working together.”

But can Perry really handle such sophisticated source material? “I spoke to Tyler before we started filming and I was really excited about his vision,” Washington says. “I think after producing ‘Precious’ he really showed he was committed to more than one genre of storytelling.”

“For Colored Girls” is a look at the lives of black women. Can a male director like Perry get the nuances? “I think that’s a question for him and a question for audiences,” Washington says. She adds that “the fact that you had the number of actresses you did commit to the film” was a sign that the script for Perry’s movie had done justice to the play.

“We had a really incredible experience,” Washington says of shooting the film.

The Urbanworld Film Festival continues through Sept. 19 in New York City.

Source

Actress Kerry Washington has had a varied career in Hollywood, appearing in such film as the Chris Rock comedy “I Think I Love My Wife,” the drama “The Last King of Scotland” and the superhero movie “Fantastic Four.”

This weekend, she’s taken on a new role as the “festival ambassador” for the 14th annual Urbanworld Film Festival, an event held in New York City dedicated to promoting multicultural cinema. She also attended the festival premiere of her new film “Night Catches Us,” a drama from first-time director Tanya Hamilton.

Speakeasy talked to Washington about the festival and her new movie.

Speakeasy: What is Urbanworld about?

I think that film is really the dominant way that we tell stories now. It’s important to me that everyone has a seat at the table when it comes to storytelling. That everybody is allowed to see themselves on the screen and experience everyone else’s culture. Urbanworld is a festival that allows that to happen—it supports independent filmmakers of color, urban filmmakers, filmmakers that are telling stories that may not be told by studio heads and people in the mainstream.

Your new film “Night Catches Us” is a period piece that involves the Black Panthers. What drew you to this script?

I was intrigued by idea that here was a piece that took place within the context of the Black Panther party, but it was not a film about what we normally think about the Black Panthers. It’s not a film filled with stereotypical imagery. It goes beyond the imagery to tell a story of real human beings who are dealing with real human issues. So it’s not just Afros and machine guns and black fists. It’s about two people—my character and [co-star] Anthony Mackie’s character—who are trying to make sense of their lives 10 years after being involved in the movement. Those are universal issues we’re all dealing with: how do you make peace with the past?

What was it like working with Tanya Hamilton?

She’s really fun, she’s been developing the film for many years. It was nice to be part of the process that helped make it happen. It was exciting to be part of her first film.

Source

Kerry Washington is featured on the cover and inside the Fall 2010 issue of “Philadelphia Style” Magazine! You can read the article and find out where to get your copy of the magazine at PhillyStyleMag.com!