Close-Up: On Teza, Cinema, and American Empire: An Interview with Haile Gerima

This is the edited transcript of an interview with Haile Gerima that took place in August 2012 at the Sankofa store—Sankofa Films, Videos, Books and Café—at 2714 Georgia Avenue, NW, Washington DC, 20001. Located across from Howard University, where the filmmaker teaches in the John H. Johnson School of Communications' Department of Radio, Television and Film, this site is a vital Black community center as well as the postproduction site for his Negod Gwad productions. The interview spanned two and a half hours and covered a wide range of topics, most of which pivoted around Teza (2008), his most recent and internationally renowned film; Teza was released on DVD in May 2012 and can be ordered at www.sankofa.com.