
In
observance
of
Black
History
Month,
Potomac
High
School
is
holding
an
ongoing
film
festival
to
bring
more
awareness
to
African
American
contributions
to
the
arts.
Every
Thursday
for
the
month
of
February,
students
have
the
opportunity
to
view
a
film
in
one
of
four
separate
classrooms.
The
films,
many
of
which
are
directed
or
produced
by
African
Americans,
tell
the
stories
of
notable
African
Americans
and
feature
diverse
characters.
Among
the
choices
are:
"42,"
"Lee
Daniels'
The
Butler,"
"Hidden
Figures,"
"Selma,"
and
"Spider-Man:
Into
the
Spider-Verse."
"The
focus
of
the
event
is
to
bring
awareness
of
African
American
actors',
producers',
and
filmmakers'
contribution
to
the
arts,"
said
Erica
Edwards,
an
earth
science
teacher
at
Potomac
High.
"We
also
hope
to
enlighten
students
about
the
contributions
of
African
Americans
in
history
such
as
sports,
science
and
civil
rights."
"42"
is
a
2013
biographical
film
about
the
racial
integration
of
African
American
professional
baseball
player,
Jackie
Robinson,
into
major
league
baseball.
Robinson
wore
jersey
number
42
throughout
his
career
with
the
Brooklyn
Dodgers.
"Lee
Daniels'
The
Butler"
is
a
2013
biographical
film
based
on
the
life
of
Eugene
Allen.
Allen
was
an
African
American
who
worked
in
the
White
House
for
34
years
and
witnessed
several
notable
political
and
social
events
of
the
20th
century.
"Hidden
Figures"
is
a
2016
biographical
film
about
three
African
American
female
mathematicians
who
worked
at
the
National
Aeronautics
and
Space
Administration
(NASA)
during
the
Space
Race.
"Selma"
is
a
2014
historical
drama
film
based
on
the
1965
voting
rights
marches
that
took
place
in
Alabama
from
Selma
to
Montgomery.
"Spider-Man:
Into
the
Spider-Verse"
is
a
2018
computer-animated
film
featuring
the
Marvel
Comics
character,
Miles
Morales.
Morales
is
an
Afro-Latino
teenage
science
prodigy
who
gains
superpowers
and
joins
other
Spider-Men
from
various
dimensions
to
save
New
York
City
from
villains.
The
festival
is
being
sponsored
by
Potomac
High's
National
Honor
Society,
Science
National
Honor
Society,
and
Culinary
Club.
Edwards
hopes
that
the
film
festival
will
also
encourage
students
to
consider
joining
these
extracurricular
activities.