Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Kobi Libii, the Filmmaker Behind The American Society of Magical Negroes

By Bailey Pennick

One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival is having a front-row seat for the bright future of independent filmmaking. While we can learn a lot about the filmmakers from the 2024 Sundance Film Festival through the art that these storytellers share with us, there's always more we can learn about them as people. This year, we decided to get to the bottom of those artistic wells with our ongoing series: Give Me the Backstory!

When asked who he first told that his film got into the 2024 Festival, Kobi Libii won't limit his response to just one person. My wife, then Justice, he says. It's fitting that the writer-director of The American Society of Magical Negroes reached out to Justice Smith, the film's star, second. Libii's creative relationship with the rising actor runs deep thanks to Libii's time at the Sundance Labs.

I was lucky enough to go through the Writers Lab and Directors Lab with this film in 2019, Libii says of his Institute connection to his feature-length debut. Both were invaluable, but particularly the Directors Lab - it's a true workshop. I got to shoot, cut and screen quick-and-dirty versions of a few scenes in the film, purely for my own learning. It's hard to overstate how beneficial that was. There's stuff I only had the guts to try in the real film because I had done proof-of-concept versions at the lab.

And we're so thankful Libii had those guts because The American Society of Magical Negroes is a film ready to ask some serious questions through a fantastical premise. Imagine a version of our present day world that features a secret society of Black people with special powers bestowed on them for the sole purpose of keeping white people happy. This is where we meet Aren (Smith), a textile artist who's looking for his place in the world while he understands how society really works.

The American Society of Magical Negroes debuted at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in the premieres section and you could feel the strong connection between filmmaker and actor on stage. This brings us back to the power of the 2019 Directors Lab: [It's also] where I met Justice Smith, who's the lead in the film, and a very special collaborator. So, on a personal level, it's incredibly satisfying to premiere at Sundance. It's been such an integral part of the development of the film that it feels a bit like coming home.

Below read about why Libii thinks The American Society of Magical Negroes needs to be told now, what he would be doing if he wasn't a filmmaker, and the one item in his fridge that is just for him.

LINK:	https://www.sundance.org/blogs/give-me-the-backstory-get-to-know-kobi-...
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