By Leone Ross
The Voice
June 29, 1993
The latest of Birthrights shows Black British documentary makers at their best.
[The] career of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, the immensely prolific Black classical composer who was packing the Albert Hall in 1904. "He was only 37 when he died, and he has virtually vanished into obscurity, regardless of the fact that there was no other
composer at the time who was documented to such an extend."
Last, but no means least, the cameras of Aimimage Production swoop into The Voices very own newsroom on Coldharbour Lane, south London, to trace the evolution and role of the Black press in Black Ink, which is centered on our coverage of the Cardiff Three trial.
"Newspapers, whether good or bad, have been the only source of documentation for Black people," says writer-director Kolton Lee, a former editor of The Voice. "I wanted to
emphasize and celebrate the contributions of the Black press, and I wanted it to be done very clearly, by a Black director."
Birthrights has, from the outset, explored a variety of topics, including racism on he cricket pitch, science fiction and female sexuality. And it has, in the man, tackled them well. Ngozi Onwurahs Who Stole The Soul Won a 1992 Royal Television Society award for its examination of the role of music in Afro-Caribbean Culture.
But the series is at an end, and many of the people involved are asking a lot of questions. That programming from a Black perspective is valid is unquestionable; that it is entertaining has been proven. Its noteworthy that the programme has been shuttled up from its original August slot to July. Karen Merkel puts it succinctly. "August is the dumping ground." Chris Lent, executive producer of the series, agrees. "It was moved up because of its quality. This is a more prominent spot."
Kolton Lee has one of his scripts in the running for "an initiative that will feature Black drama", the continuation of the Equal Opportunities-born MOSAIC project that Birthrights was a part of. He is pleased with this, but regrets the ending of the documentary series. "Its a shame that it has to be an either/or situation."
Celina Smith talks about the sense of urgency in volved in the making of crossing the Tracks. "We covered a lot, in case we never got the opportunity again. What other forums are going to be made available"
Lent is diplomatic and earnest. "Im an optimist. My hope is that Birthrights will return. But there have been three series in a row, and its interesting to change the format, exploring the dramatic field. In the last ten years or so, with the development of the pop video industry, satellite, cable, home video equipment, the demand for goods increasing. The market will demand more material from Black perspective."
In the meantime, Lee says that the directors are talking of getting together and visiting BBC execs to discuss the situation. What this space.
