By Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D, NNPA Newswire Culture and Entertainment Editor

In an increasingly digital world, social media platforms become sites of joy, pain and transformation for users. Award-winning Panamanian American filmmaker Dehanza Rogers’ documentary, “Social,” explores how these sites affect the real lives of creators and activists. The documentary debuted on WNET as part of ALL ARTS First Twenty series, which explores events that have caused a shift in the collective American consciousness with artists as guides. ALL ARTS invites viewers to witness the artists’ responses to incidents or moments in the first 20 years of the 21st century.

ALL ARTS artistic director James King says the series examines, “What has occurred in the first two decades of the 21st century that has caused a shift in the collective American consciousness, and how has that changed American culture and art?”

On the ALL ARTS website, King writes:

Our guides are artists working across all disciplines in the fine, visual, performance and literary arts. With them, we explore events that have caused a shift in the collective consciousness of our time. Each artist has employed their creative expression to create a stop along our journey that is a reflection of their personal insights, discoveries and hopes in response to a particular incident or moment in these first 20 years of the 21st century. Check out a clip below:

Watch Dehanza Rogers’ entire film,”Social” here.

The first film in the series was “Michael Mwenso Honors George Floyd,” a powerful concert homage featuring some of today’s greatest Black artists, which debuted May 25, 2021, on the one-year anniversary of George Floyd’s killing. The 2022 series continues with work from artists Pregones Puerto Rican Traveling Theater (Pregones/PRTT) and Rogers.

See the schedule of the films here.

Watch the films in the FIRST TWENTY series at ALL ARTS on WNET.

Follow ALL ARTS on Twitter or Instagram @ALLARTSTV.

This article was written by Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D., founder & editor-in-chief of The Burton Wire. Follow Nsenga on Twitter @Ntellectual.

Follow The Burton Wire on Twitter or Instagram @TheBurtonWire to learn more about independent Black creators and art.

This article originally appeared in The Burton Wire.

The post ALL ARTS FIRST TWENTY: ‘Social’ Doc on Social Media and Black Identity Debuts first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Nsenga K. Burton Ph.D.

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