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Spark (1998 film)

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Spark
DVD cover
Directed byGarret Williams
Written byGarret Williams
Produced byJim Walton
Andrew B. Hurwitz
Ruth Charney
StarringTerrence Howard
Nicole Ari Parker
Sandra Ellis Lafferty
Brendan Sexton III
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release dates
  • January 16, 1998 (1998-01-16) (Sundance)
  • May 15, 1998 (1998-05-15) (United States)
Running time
103 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Spark is a 1998 psychological thriller film directed by Garret Williams in his directorial debut. It stars Terrence Howard, Nicole Ari Parker, Sandra Ellis Lafferty, and Brendan Sexton III. The film centers on a Black couple who become marooned in a backwater desert town after their car breaks down. Williams workshopped the film at the Sundance Filmmaker Labs.[1][2]

Spark had its world premiere at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival and also screened at Berlinale.

Premise

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Byron and Nina, a young Black couple from Chicago, are driving a BMW en route to Los Angeles, where Nina will be attending college. They are driving through a desert when they experience a car breakdown after accidentally hitting a dog. Mooney, a sullen teenager and son of a local mechanic, befriends the couple and tows them to a small town where they are charged $500 for repairs. When the BMW dies again, Byron and Nina are forced to stay overnight in a motel, but the situation grows increasingly grim as Byron starts spending more time with Mooney, whose true colors start to reveal a disturbing town story.

Cast

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Release

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Spark premiered at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival in the American Spectrum section.[3] It also screened at Berlinale in February 1998.[4] At the 1998 Urbanworld Film Festival, the film was awarded the prize for Best Director for Garret Williams.[5]

Spark was released on DVD by Warner Bros. as part of the American Black Film Festival series on May 15, 2007.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Garret Williams". Film Independent. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  2. ^ "Spark - Miscellaneous Notes". Turner Classic Movies Database. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  3. ^ "American Spectrum and World Cinema Section Offer Diverse Group of Films; Frontier and Midnight Films". IndieWire. December 4, 1997. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  4. ^ "Spark". berlinale.de. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  5. ^ Coe, Michelle (May 1, 2000). "Funder FAQ: The Minnesota Independent Film Fund". Independent Magazine. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  6. ^ Williams, Kam (May 2007). "DVD Review: Spark". blackfilm.com. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
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