778 Bullets (2011)

778 Bullets, running time 18 minutes, directed by Angela Aguayo

In November 1970, university, state and local police shot 778 Bullets into an off campus rental house in Carbondale, IL. The residence was rented to a handful of university students, some were assumed to be associated with the local Black Panther Party. Unlike other police raids of known Black Panther residences across the country, the Carbondale Panthers shot back. Using archive material, newspaper accounts, witness testimony and experts in the field, 778 Bullets recovers a little known history of resistance and resilience of the human struggle for self-determination. The dominant memory of the Black Panther Party would have us believe that the Panthers existed only in major urban cities; this story documents a more rural presence of radical politics and the struggle for civil rights.

Screenings

North Carolina Black Film Festival 2014, national film festival, juried competition

Exuberant Politics, a media arts festival and a yearlong programming initiative at the University of Iowa, March 4, 2014

NewFilmmakers New York 2013 (New York City) international film festival, juried, screening at Anthology Film Archives

14th San Francisco Black Film Festival 2012, international film festival, juried competition

River’s Edge International Film Festival 2012 (Paducah, KY), international film festival, juried competition

San Diego Black Film Festival 2013, international film festival, juried competition

Peace on Earth Film Festival 2013 (Chicago, IL), international film festival, juried competition

REEL Independent Film Extravaganza 2012 (Washington, DC), international film festival, juried competition

South Texas Underground Film Festival 2012 (Corpus Christi, TX), international film festival, juried, screening held at The Art Museum of South Texas

Route 66 International Film Festival 2012 (Springfield, IL), international film festival, juried competition

Offshoot Film Festival 2012 (Fayetteville, AR) national film festival, juried competition

Flint Film Festival 2012 (Flint, MI) national film festival, juried competition

We Like’em Short Film Festival 2012 (Baker City, OR) national film festival, juried competition

University of California, Berkeley Black Staff and Faculty Organization Film Series 2013 invited screening for Black History Month on February 14, 2013

New Art Film Festival 2012 (Champaign, IL) regional film festival, juried

BN Film Festival 2012 (Bloomington-Normal, IL) regional film festival, juried

Big Muddy Film Festival 2011 (Carbondale, IL),  work in progress screening

Hope and Freedom Film Festival 2010 (Los Angeles), juried competition, work in progress screening

SIUC Combined Faculty Show 2010 (Carbondale, IL), work in progress screening

Awards

Best Historical Film, Route 66 International Film Festival 2012 (Springfield, IL)

Best Documentary, Flint Film Festival 2012 (Flint, MI)

Community Engagement

778 Bullets Raises Broad Discussion

Press

Indie Blazing: 5 Independent Black Films You Should See This Season

More Historical Background

Black Panther History from the Daily Egyptian