A Different Image

1982 American film

A Different Image

Directed by| Alile Sharon Larkin
Written by| Alile Sharon Larkin
Produced by| Alile Sharon Larkin
Women Make Movies
Starring| Margòt Saxton-Federella
Michael Adisa Anderson
Cinematography| Charles Burnett
Edited by| Alile Sharon Larkin
Charles BurnettRef?
Music by| Munyungo Jackson

Release date

* 1982 (1982)

Running time

| 52 min.
Country| United States
Language| English

A Different Image is a 1982 American film that was directed, written, and edited by Alile Sharon Larkin that explores body image and societal beauty standards through the eyes of a young Black woman on a journey towards self-worth.

## Summary

[edit]

Alana (Margot Saxton-Federlla), an art student, explores sexuality, Western ideals of beauty, and her own self-worth in 1980's Los Angeles.[1] Vincent (Adisa Anderson), her long-time friend, feels pressured to turn their platonic relationship into a sexual one which further intensified Alana's frustration with western, patriarchal beauty standards and gender norms.[2]

## Cast

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* Margòt Saxton-Federella as Alana
* Michael Adisa Anderson as Vincent

## Production

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Creating a Different Image: Portrait of Alile Sharon Larkin is a 1989 documentary about the making of A Different Image[3]

## Reception

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The film is considered as a groundbreaking foray into a realistic character portrait of a young Black woman. Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times heralded it as "...extraordinary, a fresh and clear expression of an acute sensibility.[4]"

### Awards and recognition

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* First Prize, Black American Cinema Society Award
* Official Selection, London Black Film Festival
* Best Production of 1981, Black Filmmaker Foundation
* Runner Up, Best Short Film, Filmex[5]
* Official Selection, the 2011 L. A. Rebellion: Creating New Cinema[6]

### Screenings

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* UCLA's L.A. Rebellion Film Series, UCLA Hammer Museum, 2011[7]
* Madeline Anderson Shorts, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 2013[8]
* Afterimage: Madeline Anderson, Berkeley Art Museum, 2016[9]
* One Way or Another: Black Women's Cinema, 1970–1991, Brooklyn Academy of Music, 2017[10]

## Preservation

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The Black Film Center/Archive preserved A Different Image, which included 16mm original color reversal A/B rolls and full-coat magnetic track elements. They produced a 16mm color internegative, a soundtrack negative, and two new 16mm projection prints.[11]

The script of the film was published in a 1991 compilation of collected works called Screenplays of the African American Experience.[citation needed]

## See also

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* L.A. Rebellion
* Black Women Filmmakers

## References

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1. ^ Mumin, Nijla. ""A Different Image": Alile Sharon Larkin Retrospective (L.A. Rebellion Film Series) | IndieWire". www.indiewire.com.
2. ^ Field, Allyson (2015). L.A. Rebellion: Creating a New Black Cinema. Univ of California Press. ISBN 9780520960435.
3. ^ "Creating a Different Image: Portrait of Alile Sharon Larkin | UCLA Film & Television Archive". www.cinema.ucla.edu.
4. ^ "Women Make Movies | A Different Image". www.wmm.com.
5. ^ "SPLA | Alile Sharon Larkin". www.spla.pro.
6. ^ "Movie: A Different Image – Sembene Film Festival". www.sembenefilmfestival.org.
7. ^ ""A Different Image": Alile Sharon Larkin Retrospective (L.A. Rebellion Film Series)". shadowandact.com.
8. ^ "Madeline Anderson Shorts". BAM.org.
9. ^ "Afterimage: Madeline Anderson | BAMPFA". bampfa.org.
10. ^ "One Way or Another: Black Women's Cinema, 1970-1991". BAM.org.
11. ^ "Alile Sharon Larkin | Black Film Center/Archive". blackfilmcenterarchive.wordpress.com.

## External links

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* A Different Image at IMDb