“Precious” Comes Home to New York

(Oct.6) Filmmaker Lee Daniels continued on his film festival circuit coming home to New York Saturday night for the premiere of his Harlem-based film Precious at the New York Film Festival.

“The movie ain’t started and Harlem’s out,” Lee Daniels exclaimed while taking the stage to a cheering audience.  He became very emotional when he thanked his mother, who was in the audience and thanked the film’s distributor, LionsGate for “putting up with my drama.”

The film follows Clareece “Precious” Jones (played by Gabourey Sidibe), an obese, illiterate 16-year-old pregnant with her own father’s second child and victim of abuse from her mother (played by comedian Mo’Nique),  as she enrolls in an alternative school in hopes of turning her life around.

Precious won three awards at the Sundance Film Festival; the Grand Jury Prize, the Audience Award in the Dramatic category, and a Special Jury Award for Mo’Nique’s acting.

The film also won the People’s Choice award at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival.  Making Precious the only film to ever win the audience at Toronto and Sundance.

Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry joined on as executive producers and the film was quickly snatched up for distribution by Lionsgate.  Winfrey’s Harpo Productions and Perry’s 34th Street Films are both providing promotional assistance for the nationwide release on November 6th, 2009.

During an interview, Winfrey was asked why a film like Precious was still necessary with images of African Americans like the First Family.

“This feels like a modern-day ‘Color Purple.’  Precious feels like a Celie who lives in Harlem. The story of abuse in our community and in many communities is still a taboo subject. The story and the arc of hope and possibility and empowerment is an evergreen, timeless story that I think this generation, the generation before us and many generations to come will also be entertained and inspired by.”

Film critics have been discussing the prospect of Precious being nominated for the Best Picture category with Gabourey Sidibe nominated for Best Actress at the 82nd Academy Awards.

Mo’Nique and Mariah Carey, who plays the counselor, have also been considered the front runners for the Academy Awards for Best Supporting Actress.

Precious will continue on the festival circuit over the next month with screenings at AFI, London BFI, Chicago, Austin, Denver, among others, and is being released in theaters November 6th.