Steve McQueen's Small Axe Series Premieres at Rome Film Festival

At the 15th Rome Film Festival, Steve McQueen presented his television series Small Axe, a collection of five films originally conceived eleven years ago. In a press conference, McQueen linked the project to the George Floyd case and the Black Lives Matter movement, emphasizing the urgency of addressing racism. The film Red, White and Blue, based on real events, follows Leroy Logan, a Black researcher who joins the police after his father is assaulted by officers, aiming to reform the system from within. The story explores conflicts with his community, his father, and within the police force. The article questions when Black cinema will move beyond social conflict narratives to explore more complex, antiheroic characters and unconscious depths.