Directors/Producers: Stanley Nelson, Nicole London
Description:
We Want the Funk! traces funk music’s history, from its African roots to soul, gospel, jazz, and the genre’s mainstream breakthrough. Born out of the energy coming out of the Civil Rights Movement, funk exploded on the scene out of the Midwest in the 1960s and was an integral part of the revolution of the era. Featuring James Brown and George Clinton’s Parliament Funkadelic, this documentary traces the influence of funk music on new wave and hip-hop.
Biography:
Stanley Nelson is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker. He is a McArthur Fellow and a member of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Nelson was notably awarded the National Humanities Medal by President Obama. Some of his past films include Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution, and Jonestown: The Life and Death of People’s Temple.
Nicole London is a Grammy Award-nominated producer and filmmaker. Her film, Miles Davis: Birth of the Cool, was awarded a News and Documentary Emmy Award in 2021. Some of her other films include Sammy Davis, Jr.: I’ve Gotta Be Me and The Talk: Race in America. London also has 16 films currently playing in the Smithsonian Museum’s Segregation Gallery.
