‘Afropop’ television SERIES BEATS THE DRUM FOR ‘PAN’
Episode two of the documentary series is ‘Pan! Our Music Odyssey’,
an exploration of the magic and mystery behind the steel drum, or pan
Premieres on WORLD Channel on Monday, January 25
NEW YORK (January 13, 2016)—Season eight of AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange—the nation’s only documentary series about life, art and culture across the African Diaspora—continues with the electrifying story of the steel drum, or pan. Premiering on Monday, January 25, at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on WORLD Channel, directors Jérôme Guiot and Thierry Teston’s high-energy Pan! Our Music Odyssey is a tale of how the steel drum came to be—and how it came to be so big! AfroPoP is hosted by Jussie Smollett, star of the hit FOX TV show Empire, produced by National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) and co-presented by American Public Television (APT).
Through docudrama, competition footage and interviews, Pan! Our Music Odyssey explores the development of the steel drum in Trinidad & Tobago to its place as a musical force around the world. While, initially, urban youth would form bands that became bitter and often bloody rivalries, soon their fierce loyalties played out in competitions. The film captures the excitement as musicians show up with their “A” game at Panorama, the ultimate international steel band competition.
“Using dramatizations based on real historical events, the filmmakers have given us a riveting look at the history of the steel drum, all while capturing its immense popularity today, said NBPC Director of Programs and Acquisitions and AfroPoP Executive Producer Kay Shaw. “We are very excited to bring this story, as it has never been told before, to US audiences as the arts centerpiece of this season’s series.”
New episodes of AfroPoP premiere weekly on Mondays through February 15. The show kicks off on Monday, January 18, with Days of Hope. Director Ditte Haarløv Johnsen’s film is an insightful portrait of three West African migrants who cross the Sahara desert and Atlantic Ocean in a search for opportunity and safety in Europe, only to find their struggle has just begun.
On February 1, the show heads to São Vicente in Cape Verde on February 1 with Pablo García Pérez de Lara and Marc Serena’s Tchindas. The film introduces viewers to Tchinda, a transgender woman so cherished that her name has become synonymous with LBGT people in the area. The documentary follows the celebrated character and her friends as they prepare for the beloved annual carnival and its thousands of revelers.
On February 8, the series visits Oakland, California, once considered one of the most dangerous cities in America, as it works to clean up its image. The key tool? Its First Friday monthly street festivals. When a young Black man is murdered during the event, however, the fate of the community celebration is thrown into question. N’Jeri Eaton and Mario Furloni’s First Friday accompanies a diverse collection of city figures as they attend the First Friday that follows the tragic death.
The series returns to Africa—both East and West—on February 15 with a shorts program that celebrates the hope and inspiration of our youth. Nosarieme Garrick’s My Africa Is turns the spotlight on Nairobi and trailblazing young designers, inventors and musicians breaking ground to change Kenya’s future. Terence Nance and Blitz the Ambassador’s Native Sun takes viewers on a trip through Ghana with an eight-year-old on the hunt for his father after the early death of his mother.
AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange is produced by Angela Tucker and directed by Duana Butler. The series is produced with the generous support of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and National Endowment for the Arts.
For details on AfroPoP, visit www.blackpublicmedia.org. APT distributes the series to the full public television system in February 2016. Viewers may find out when and where to watch, including additional air dates for each of the episodes, by checking local listings or online at www.APTonline.org.
ABOUT THE HOST
Jussie Smollett stars as Jamal Lyon on the hit series Empire from producer/director Lee Daniels. His role allows him to blend his acting, singing and songwriting skills in the high-octane family drama, which is a historic hit on FOX. Smollett’s feature film credits include The Mighty Ducks, Rob Reiner’s North, and Alex Haley’s Queen (alongside Halle Berry and Danny Glover). He also appeared in the telefilm A Little Piece of Heaven, opposite Cloris Leachman, and starred with his five real-life siblings in the network comedy On Our Own. Smollett recently appeared on Revenge and The Mindy Project, and was seen in the independent film Ask Me Anything. He received rave reviews for his portrayal of Magnus, a gay medical student hosting his college friends in New York City, in the 2012 film The Skinny.
Smollett will next be seen in the new WGN thriller Underground in 2016 and he is currently recording his album, described as a mix of pop and soul with alternative hip-hop beats.
ABOUT THE PRESENTERS
ABOUT NBPC:
The National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) is committed to enriching our democracy by educating, enlightening, empowering and engaging the American public. We support diverse voices by developing, producing and distributing innovative media about the Black experience and by investing in visionary content makers. NBPC provides quality content for public media outlets, including, among others, PBS and PBS.org and BlackPublicMedia.org, as well as other platforms, while training and mentoring the next generation of Black filmmakers. Founded in 1979, NBPC produces the AfroPoP: The Ultimate Cultural Exchange documentary series and manages NBPC 360, a funding and training initiative designed to accelerate the production of important Black serial and interactive content.
About American Public Television:
American Public Television (APT) has been a leading syndicator of high-quality, top-rated programming to the nation’s public television stations since 1961. For more than 10 years, APT has annually distributed one-third or more of the top 100 highest-rated public television titles in the U.S. Among its 300 new program titles per year, APT programs include prominent documentaries, news and current affairs programs, dramas, how-to programs, children’s series and classic movies. AfroPoP, America’s Test Kitchen From Cook’s Illustrated, Rick Steves’ Europe, Front and Center, Doc Martin, Nightly Business Report, Midsomer Murders, Vera, NHK Newsline, Lidia’s Kitchen, Globe Trekker, Simply Ming and P. Allen Smith’s Garden Home join numerous documentaries and performance programs popular with public television viewers. APT licenses programs internationally through its APT Worldwide service. Now in its 11th year, Create® TV—featuring the best of public television's lifestyle programming—is distributed by APT. APT also distributes WORLD™, public television’s premier news, science and documentary channel. To find out more about APT’s programs and services, visit APTonline.org.
About WORLD CHANNEL:
The WORLD Channel delivers the best of public television’s nonfiction, news and documentary programing to US audiences through local public television stations and streaming online at worldchannel.org. WORLD reached 35.8 million unique viewers 18+ last year (55% adults 18-49) and over-indexes in key diversity demographics.* Online, the WORLD Channel expands on broadcast topics and fuels dialogue across social media, providing opportunities for broad and diverse audience interaction (*Source: Nielsen Local Buyer Reach Scorecard 01/14-12/14). WORLD is programmed by WGBH/Boston, in partnership with American Public Television and WNET/New York, and in association with the American Public Television and National Educational Telecommunications Association. Funding for the WORLD Channel is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the Ford Foundation. Additional funding for America ReFramed is provided by the MacArthur Foundation.
Replies
Just managed to catch the second half of the show on New Hampshire PublicTV , and its the best ( and only ) feature I've ever seen on TV in New England about Trinidad culture in general , and pan and panorama in particular.
And I've been here for over forty years , folks.
Outstanding show , guys.
Fortunately it will be repeated in the early am , so I've set my DVR to catch it in its entirety.
I suggest you check your local Public TV schedule , since there may be several repeats in different areas.
We are not that far apart Glenroy ... but we are on different sides of the spectrum, yet. I found it three minutes in on Sacramento TV and it is coming on again at 10.00 p.m PST. So I will catch the first three minutes that I missed.
Sacramento TV is bringing it now!!!
KQED (San Francisco) does not have this broadcast scheduled. And I so want to see this show. I don't want to wait until February 8th in Oakland.
Will there be a video link?