Biography
Melvin Van Peebles was an American actor, filmmaker, writer, and composer. His feature film debut, The Story of a Three-Day Pass (1967), was based on his own French-language novel La Permission and was shot in France, as it was difficult for a black American director to get work at the time. The film won an award at the San Francisco International Film Festival which gained him the interest of Hollywood studios, leading to his American feature debut Watermelon Man, in 1970. Eschewing further overtures from Hollywood, he used the successes he had so far to bankroll his work as an independent filmmaker.
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA
Awards & recognition
- Commander of the Legion of Honour · 2001
- Black Filmmakers Hall of Fame · 1976
- Tony Award — Best Original Score · 1972 · nominated
Filmography37 titles
Sunlight
Homicide: Life on the Street
Living Single
The Outer Limits
The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975
Girlfriends
How to Eat Your Watermelon in White Company (and Enjoy It)
Sex: The Revolution
Dream On
500 Francs
Three Pick-Up Men for Herrick
Wattstax
Baadasssss!
Last Action Hero
Greased Lightning
The Story of a Three-Day Pass
The Shining
Watermelon Man
Oscar Micheaux: The Superhero of Black Filmmaking
Calm at Sunset
The Black List: Volume Two
Don't Play Us Cheap
Boomerang
Slogan
Peeples
True Identity
Hard Luck
Taking Care of Terrific
Terminal Velocity
Posse
Gang in Blue
Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song
American Swing
Redemption Road
Armed
Jaws: The Revenge
Hollywood Black