The winter air was cool and crisp as Harry and Linda Eaddy walked along the Denton Square. The couple had spent their afternoon watching films at Thin Line Fest, known for featuring documentaries. As they made their way back to their car, Harry turned to Linda and said, “You know, we don’t really see a lot of Black cinema. We would probably benefit from a Black film festival.”
“Yeah, right,” Linda said, somewhat skeptically.
Harry worked in the tech industry as head of sales, but he knew nothing about starting a film festival from scratch, particularly one in a community where, at the time, only 8% of the population was Black. Yes, he had an appreciation for the arts, and was something of a painter himself, but Harry wasn’t joking.
That was eight years ago. Now, the Denton Black Film Festival, under Harry’s leadership as executive director since 2015, is presenting its eighth year of programming.
In its first year, more than 800 people attended the day-and-a-half event. Now, the number has grown to more than 8,000 for what has become an 11-day virtual event beginning Thursday and continuing through Feb. 6. The festival will feature 115 films, with more than 40% them directed by women.
When the festival began, its only focus was film, but when Harry became the festival director in its second year, the DBFF expanded to add music, visual art and spoken word. The festival also added comedy, artist panels and workshops in the years following.
The African American Scholarship Foundation, of which Harry serves as president, became the festival’s founding sponsor, helping him turn his vision into reality. The Denton Black Film Festival is dedicated to serving, educating and inspiring the Denton community by sharing Black culture.