Phillip Youmans | |
---|---|
Born |
New Orleans,
Louisiana, U.S. | February 18, 2000
Nationality | American |
Alma mater | New York University |
Occupation | Filmmaker |
Notable work | Burning Cane (2019) |
Website |
phillipyoumans |
Phillip Youmans (born February 18, 2000) [1] is an American filmmaker. He is the first African-American director to win the Founders Prize at Tribeca Film Festival, which he received for his 2019 directorial debut, Burning Cane. [2]
Youmans was born and raised in New Orleans. [3] He first became interested in film-making when he was 13. Youmans attended two high schools through a dual enrollment program: Benjamin Franklin High School and New Orleans Center for Creative Arts. [4]
He completed his freshman year at New York University in May 2019. [1] In October 2019 he stated he may drop out of the program to focus on his career. [4]
Youmans wrote, shot, directed and edited his first feature-length film, Burning Cane, as a senior in high school, when he was 17. [5] [3] The film grew from a short film that Youmans wrote called The Glory. [3] It tells the story of a woman (played by Karen Kaia Livers) in rural Louisiana and her relationships with her alcoholic son and a local preacher. [6] It also stars and was co-produced by Wendell Pierce. [1] [7] Raised Baptist, Youmans stated that the goal of Burning Cane was to "touch on [] how rigid religious conviction can be within the rural South, especially under sort of rigid interpretation of Protestantism." [3] Youmans financed the film with $2500 in personal savings, an Indiegogo campaign, and donations from friends and family. [4]
Burning Cane won the Founders Prize and the prize for best cinematography in a U.S. narrative feature film at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival. Youmans is the first African-American director to receive the Founders Prize; he is also the youngest director to have a film accepted to the Tribeca Film Festival. [5]
Youmans announced that he is currently developing his next feature film, which will focus on "the Black Panther chapter in New Orleans during 1978." [4]
Year | Award | Category | Nominated work | Result |
---|---|---|---|---|
2019 | American Film Festival | Best Narrative Feature | Burning Cane | Nominated |
Tribeca Film Festival | Best Cinematography | Won | ||
Founders Prize | Won | |||
2020 | Black Reel Awards | Outstanding First Screenplay | Nominated | |
Outstanding Independent Feature | Nominated | |||
Independent Spirit Awards | John Cassavetes Award | Nominated | ||
Gotham Awards | Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director Award | Nominated | ||
Audience Award | Nominated |