The United States vs. Billie Holiday, directed by Lee Daniels: Based on the book “Chasing the Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs by Johann Hari”, this film follows American jazz singer Billie Holiday (played by Andra Day) and her career in 1940s New York as she is targeted by the Federal Department of Narcotics via an undercover sting operation led by Jimmy Fletcher (played by Trevante Rhodes), a Black Agent with whom she allegedly had an affair. The government’s actions are part of efforts to escalate and racialize the war on drugs, with the ultimate aim of stopping Holiday from performing her controversial anti-lynching song “Strange Fruit”. Her persistent defiance through music would help usher in the civil rights movement. The film examines “one of the greatest jazz musicians of all time” and her struggles with addiction, fame and love. Watch the trailer here and watch the film on Hulu here.
MLK/FBI, directed by Sam Pollard: This documentary film follows American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. and his investigation and harassment at the hands of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Through archival footage and newly declassified documents, the film explores attempts by the FBI and then-director J. Edgar Hoover in the 1950’s and 60’s to discredit MLK as the civil rights movement gains momentum by collecting recordings and images of his private sexual life with women other than his wife. Watch the trailer here and get the film here.
About Parminder Vir OBE
Parminder Vir OBE has dedicated herself to positively impacting and transforming lives through a professional career spanning 40 years in philanthropy, entrepreneurship, film and television production, arts and culture, and investment funding. She is the co-founder of the Support4AfricaSMEs campaign and The African Farmers Stories, launched in 2020. She served as the CEO of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, based in Lagos, Nigeria from April 2014 to April 2019. Prior to joining the Foundation, Parminder has enjoyed a distinguished career as an awarding winning film and television producer and private equity investor in film and media.
