A. V. Rockwell (born Alina Victoria Rockwell) is an American film director. In 2023, she made her directorial feature film debut with the film A Thousand and One, which gave her a Gotham Award, a Black Reel Award, an Independent Spirit Award, a Director's Guild nomination, and nominations at the NAACP Image Awards.
Early life and education Born in 1990https://blavity.com/get-to-know-a-v-rockwell-filmmaker-tells-sa-about-dark-elements-of-her-open-city-mixtape-shorts, Rockwell was born and raised in Queens, New York, to parents from Jamaica. She attended high school at Brooklyn Technical High School and attended film school at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. One of her early inspirations to pursue film came from studying European cinema while studying in Paris.
Career One of Rockwell's early works was the series Open City Mixtape, which followed young people's stories in New York City, and was shot in black-and-white. Subsequently, Rockwell worked with Alicia Keys on the music-focused music short film The Gospel for Keys' sixth studio album, Here. The work gave her a silver Clio Awards.
In 2018, Rockwell released her short film Feathers, which debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival. For Feathers, Rockwell was named the grand-prize winner of the Tribeca Film Institute and CHANEL’s Through Her Lens grant; the film was selected as part of the 2019 Sundance Film Festival and was then acquired by Fox Searchlight Pictures for their Searchlight Shorts collection.
In 2023, Rockwell made her feature debut with A Thousand and One, starring Teyana Taylor and set in Harlem, New York, between 1994 and 2005. The film debuted at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Grand Jury Prize. She has cited Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee as influences, as well as the films Goodfellas, Crooklyn, Do the Right Thing, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Z, The Battle of Algiers, and Seven Beauties.
Over her career, Rockwell has been named one of Filmmaker Magazine’s 25 New Faces of Independent Film, was a 2018 Young Guns award winner, and has received fellowships from the Sundance Institute, Tribeca Film Institute and the John S. Guggenheim Foundation. She won the Breakthrough Director Award at the 2023 Gotham Awards for her work in her feature film directorial debut A Thousand and One.
Filmography +YearTitleDirectorWriterProducerNotes2016The GospelYesYesNoShort film2018FeathersYesYesYesShort film2023A Thousand and OneYesYesExecutiveFeature directorial debut
Accolades AssociationYearWorkCategoryResultRef.African-American Film Critics Association 2024A Thousand and OneBest Independent Feature Astra Film Awards 2024A Thousand and One Best First FeatureAustin Film Critics Association 2023A Thousand and One Best First Film Black Film Critics Circle 2023HerselfRising Star Award Black Reel Awards 2024A Thousand and OneOutstanding Independent FilmOutstanding DirectorOutstanding Emerging DirectorOutstanding ScreenplayOutstanding First ScreenplayChicago Film Critics Association 2023A Thousand and OneBreakthrough FilmmakerClio Awards 2017Alicia Keys: The GospelMusic - Film Long Form: Music MarketingDirectors Guild of America Awards 2024A Thousand and One Outstanding Directing – First-Time Feature FilmFlorida Film Critics Circle 2023A Thousand and One Best First FilmGotham Independent Film Awards 2023A Thousand and One Best Feature Breakthrough DirectorHamptons International Film Festival 2018Feathers Best Narrative ShortIndependent Spirit Awards 2024A Thousand and One Best First FeatureNAACP Image Awards 2024A Thousand and OneOutstanding Breakthrough Creative (Motion Picture) Outstanding Writing in a Motion PictureOnline Film Critics Society 2024A Thousand and One Best Debut FeatureSan Diego Film Critics Society Awards 2023A Thousand and One Best First Feature (Director)Sundance Film Festival 2019Feathers Short Film Grand Jury Prize 2023A Thousand and OneGrand Jury Prize — U.S. DramaticToronto International Film Festival 2019Feathers Short Cuts AwardTribeca Festival 2016Alicia Keys: The Gospel Best Narrative Short
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External links
Video: The Gospel Video: The Director Imagining Freedom for Black Boys