Gera Miles' Unapologetic Films: Back to the Future with Afrofuturism

Gera Miles

Gera Miles, a cultural studies enthusiast, is a Senior Training Instructor in the ECU English department where he has been teaching for over 15 years. He is the Co-director of the Ethnic Studies Minor at the university, former Chair of the Student Scholarships Fellowships & Financial Aid Committee for the English department, and the head of the Multicultural Reading Day Committee for the Multicultural and Transnational Literature Committee, with whom he is also a member.  Additionally, he is the English Department Computer Technician and Media Specialist. He is also the Co-founder of GAME P.L.A.Y (Police, Life, And, Youth), a labor of love involving community, family, and the lives of young people focused on fostering meaningful and good relations with the police in Greenville, NC through gaming. His interests and research span across African American Literature, Modern Heroic Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Indian Mythology, Chinese and Japanese Pop-Culture, and the Golden Age of Spanish Literature. In his spare time, he enjoys spending time with his wife and children, watching Japanese movies of all types, and practicing martial arts. 

You are invited to a lively conversation about Afrofuturism in films. These works are “unapologetic” through their representation of the lived, re-imagined, and projected future experiences of the oppressed of Black people or the African Diaspora. Panelists will discuss key elements of selective works that blend speculative fiction with the cultures and experiences of Black people. Speculative fiction, an umbrella term for genre fiction or narratives that may encompass science fiction or fantasy genre, horror, or history, is a growing trend in black cinema. We will examine some of the images and cultural messaging that make Afro-Futurism a constructive tool to dispel misinformation, build understanding, re-imagine the past, and build new futures. You are invited to listen in or join the conversation with your questions and comments.

Afrofuturism Panel-Zoom Link DEFF Facebook Live