When the all-black population of East St. Louis, Ill., is disenfranchised en masse in electoral shenanigans that result in a George W. Bush–like Texan governor being elected president, the impoverished city decides to secede from the U.S., renaming itself "Blackland". Who would come up with such a hilarious premise: Filmmaker and E.St. Louis native, Reginald Hudlin and "Boondocks" creater, Aaron McGruder, with visualization by "Why I Hate Saturn" cartoonist, Kyle Baker. Read this one wearing a seat belt.

Ms. Louis-Joseph has had starring or supporting roles in a half dozen feature films in Europe and the Caribbean.

This important new 30-minute documentary film by Tania Cuevas-Martinez and Lubna Khalid focuses on the current issues of racial profiling and hate crimes on the rise in the United States since September 11. "Haters," journeys through key historical periods and contains personal accounts from victims as well as interviews with prominent activists and theorists. Featuring spoken word by Suheir Hammad (currently performing in "Def Poetry Jam," the hot new cutting edge presentation of performance poetry on Broadway.)