Book cover Stamped from the Beginning and Ibram X. Kendi -Image: GoodReads/Radcliffe Institute
Netflix announced its partnership with a renowned and sometimes controversial professor Dr. Ibram X. Kendi in January 2021 to produce two documentaries and an animated series based on his best-selling books. one of the documentaries Stamped from the start It will premiere on Netflix in 2023.
As mentioned, all three projects announced in early 2021 (Netflix removed the article from its press release hub at the time of the update), with the animated project eventually being laid off in May 2022.
Both documentaries (one of which is a hybrid scripted feature) will be directed by the Emmy Award winner. roger ross williams (the files of innocence, the apollo, Life, Animated, prudence music) through his production company One Story Up.
They will be produced by NAACP Image Award winner Mara Brock Akil (girlfriends, The game, being mary jane). Dr. Kendi will also serve as executive producer.
Dr. Kendi commented in a statement:
“I am elated that these projects have landed on Netflix. What a wonderful companion. I am delighted to be working with Roger Ross Williams, Mara Brock Akil and Chris Nee. They are such ambitious, innovative and passionate creators who are committed to racial justice. But I am really elated for the viewers, for the adults and children who will be captivated, informed and transformed by these projects.”
Director Roger Ross Williams added:
«Dr. ‘Stamped from the Beginning’ and Ibram X. Kendi’s ‘Stamped: Racism, Antiracism and You.’ thrilled to partner with Netflix to bring Dr. Kendi’s amazing work and crucial insights to a wider audience.»
The two projects were announced alongside an animated series aimed at young children called anti racist babybut Netflix canceled it along with many other animated projects as part of its content reevaluation specifically in its animation department.
Who is Dr. Ibram X. Kendi?
Dr. Ibram X. Kendi is one of America’s foremost historians and a leading anti-racist scholar. He is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities at Boston University and founding director of the BU Center for Anti-Racism Research. He is a contributing writer for The Atlantic and a racial justice contributor for CBS News. Dr. Kendi is also the 2020-2021 Frances B. Cashin Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard University.
Dr. Kendi is the author of many books, including «Seal from the Scratch: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America,» which won the National Nonfiction Book Award, making him the youngest recipient of the award. “Stamped from the start” was a New York Times bestseller, finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award, and nominated for an NAACP Image Award.
About Stamped from the start
from netflix Stamped from the start is a scripted hybrid film set to be released in 2023 based on Dr. Kendi’s National Book Award-winning book, «Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas,» and will be directed and produced by Oscar and Emmy winner Roger Ross Williams (the files of innocence, the apollo, Life, Animated, prudence music) through her production company One Story Up and executive produced by NAACP Image Award winner Mara Brock Akil (girlfriends, The game, being mary jane). Dr. Kendi will also serve as executive producer.
Here is the official synopsis of Stamped from the start:
“Some Americans desperately cling to the myth that we are living in a post-racial society, that the election of the first black president spelled the end of racism. In fact, racist thinking is alive and well in America, more sophisticated and insidious than ever. And as award-winning historian Dr. Ibram X. Kendi argues in “Stamped from the Beginning,” if we have any hope of dealing with this stark reality, we must first understand how racist ideas developed, spread, and were enshrined in American society.”
What’s on Netflix has learned that a portion of the documentary was filmed in June 2022 in New York City, USA.
According to Netflix’s 2023 whiteboard documentary:
“Williams’ documentary adaptation uses vivid animations that illuminate both familiar and obscure figures and moments, both historical and contemporary. Leading academics and activists like Dr. Angela Davis, Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, Brittany Packnett Cunningham, Dr. Jennifer L. Morgan, and Dr. Kendi guide viewers through a scathing account of how racist tropes and images developed and were enshrined in American culture.”
The documentary features Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, Dr. Angela Davis, Honorée Fanonne Jeffers, and Brittany Packnett Cunningham.
About Print: Racism, Anti-racism and You
from netflix Print: Racism, Anti-racism and You be a complementary documentary Stamped from the start (currently not confirmed for a 2023 release) which is aimed at younger viewers. Is based on #1 New York Times young adult bestseller of the same name from Dr. Kendi and Jason Reynolds and will be directed and executive produced by Roger Ross Williams and executive produced by Dr. Kendi.
Here is the official synopsis of Print: Racism, Anti-Racism and You:
“Race construction has always been used to gain and maintain power, to create dynamics that separate and silence. A complementary documentary Stamped from the startthis film reveals the history of racist ideas in America and inspires hope for an anti-racist future. Print: Racism, Anti-racism and You aims to take young viewers on a career journey, exploring how we got here, why we feel the way we do, and why the poison of racism persists.”
Note: This preview was first published in June 2022 and last updated in July 2023.