The sci-fi film genre is an odd place to find high profile Black female characters. The lack of diversity in Hollywood films is a well-known problem, but the statistics in the Sci-fi and Fantasy film genre is striking: nearly 0% of protagonists are women of color.
The small representation of diversity is staggering, so much so that when there is some representation of Black women, such as Storm (X-men), Uhura (Star Trek), Michonne (The Walking Dead), and Zoe Washburne (Firefly) they resonate with you. I grew up reading X-men comics, and while I had physical traits that were closer to the Rogue character (the natural grey streak)- I identified immediately with African Queen ‘Ororo’ or ‘Storm.’ In all of the comic book world she was the only popular Black female character anyone could think of right off the top of their head.
This is puzzling, as the sci-fi genre was founded on wild imagination and creativity, where anything is possible – human flight, galactic explorations, orange aliens, time traveling…and yet here we are still discussing the diversity gap of women of color in these make-believe worlds. Let’s also not forget that the few high profile Black female characters that do exist were also created and written by white male writers, enter Brittany Rafalak. Brittany is the writer and director of indie film ‘Consumption’ shot in Philadelphia, PA last fall.
Consumption Trailer:
Set in the near future, ‘Consumption’ is the story of Corrine, a restless and unhappy college student, who is failing despite the pressure to excel. She is introduced to food, and a group of ‘eaters’, by a classmate in a world where consuming food is outlawed. Scientists have developed a supplement that extinguishes the need to eat, creating societal improvements; poverty and hunger cease as time and resources spent in preparing and consuming food have been reallocated for lofty goals of success.
Recently I had a chance to sit down with Brittany and discuss her filmmaking approach, what it was like working with me as the lead in the film, and what she hopes will resonate most with viewers. “One of my goals is to contribute to the creative community by presenting a unique interpretation of life and crafting of film. I wanted to make a film that presents the eradication of food as something that causes a dystopian society.”