Black Studies Video Series at Duke Wins Gold in 2024 Davey Awards
DURHAM, NC — October 28th, 2024 – Web series Left of Black, on the verge of celebrating 15 years online, has been honored as a Gold Winner in the Online Film & Video category of the 20th Annual Davey Awards. The Davey Awards specifically focuses on the best work from in-house brand teams, small production companies, boutique creative agencies, and independent creators of new and innovative multimedia. This prestigious recognition was bestowed by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts (AIVA), an invitation-only collective of leading professionals from various acclaimed media, advertising, and marketing firms including Spotify, Nissan, Tinder, Condé Nast, Disney, Microsoft, GE Digital, JP Morgan, PGA Tour, Wired, and many others.
“This year, celebrating two decades of extraordinary talent from small shops was truly special,” said AIVA Managing Director Lauren Angeloni. “The work showcased in our gallery speaks volumes about the dedication and creativity of our entrants, especially in this milestone year. I was thrilled to see so many new names joining our community, reaffirming that the recognition of smaller agencies and creators remains more important than ever.”
I really wanted to create a platform that ‘loved on’ Black Studies and the Black Arts. And that’s what Left of Black is all about. -Dr. Mark Anthony Neal
This especially resonates at the John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute where the series is produced by a small team consisting of FHI multimedia director Eric Barstow and production and editing assistant, Jakiah Glass, a recent graduate of North Carolina Central University who majored in mass communications.
Production assistant Jakiah Glass on-set
The show’s host and Chair of Duke’s African & African American Studies Department, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal, was excited to learn the news. “Getting recognized by such an accomplished body as the AIVA helps bring a much-needed light to the scholarship we center in the conversations we have with our guests,” he said. “Black Studies is an academic field that has an ever-pressing immediacy to address the ongoing challenges and oppressions faced by the African diaspora. I really wanted to create a platform that ‘loved on’ Black Studies and the Black Arts. And that’s what Left of Black is all about. Getting Gold at the Davey Awards is an excellent way to kick-off this 15th season.”
The John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute, named after the famed Duke historian, has become a leader in fostering interdisciplinary projects and scholarly research. It will continue to produce and publish new episodes of the web series in its ongoing commitment to create humanities media that innovates discourse in the public sphere.
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