Black Barbie: A Documentary

Written & Directed by Lagueria Davis

Upcoming Festival Screenings

11/09 | American Film Festival (Poland)

11/10 | American Film Festival (Poland)

11/10 | Cincinnati World Cinema

11/11 | Cincinnati World Cinema

11/11 | Guelph Film Festival
11/11 | St. Louis Film Festival
11/11 | Coronado Island Film Festival

11/12 | Cincinnati World Cinema

11/12 | Nicho Novembre (Brazil)

11/12 | Three Rivers Film Festival

11/12 | Rehoboth Beach Independent Film Festival

11/13 | Three Rivers Film Festival
11/15 | Cucalorus Film Festival
11/17 | American Fringe Series at the Cinematheque Française, Paris

11/19 | Anti-Racist Filmdays (Malmo Sweden)

12/7 | The University of Wisconsin-Madison

12/14 | African American Film Series

Follow The Film

Our documentary celebrates the momentous impact three Black women at Mattel had on the evolution of the Barbie brand as we know it. Through these charismatic insiders’ stories, the documentary tells the story of how the first Black Barbie came to be in 1980, examining the importance of representation and how dolls can be crucial to the formation of identity and imagination.

Breaking News

Black Barbie: A Documentary has been acquired by Shondaland and Netflix!

Acquisition News & Reviews

Shondaland Article

Deadline Announcement

Variety Review

Collider Article

Black Girl Nerds Review

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CRITICAL PRAISE FOR BLACK BARIBIE

“Davis makes a jam-packed argument that the road to Barbie diversity and inclusion has been long and marked by detours, intersections and, maybe a dead end or two.”

Lisa Kennedy, VARIETY

“This documentary is a celebration of the talents and creativity of Black women..”

Christopher Llewellyn Reed, HAMMER TO NAIL

“Black Barbie: A Documentary’ centers Black women and girls reminding us our beauty is ubiquitous and the strength of our support and love for one another is how we always rise and thrive..”

Jeanine T. Abraham, BLACK GIRL NERDS

“An ambitious exploration of the creation and impact of Black Barbie as well as the complexities of race and representation. Multi-layered. Revelatory. Beautiful.”

Raquel Stecher, QUELLE MOVIES

“As you would probably expect, Black Barbie isn’t just about black Barbie dolls. It’s about representation, and about the biases at play in an industry that for so long never ever conceived of the idea of black children wanting a doll like Barbie.”

Glenn Dunks, THE FILM EXPERIENCE

“It would behoove those enamored by the Barbie movie to take their time to watch this enlightening film that examines Barbie dolls’ intergenerational impact, especially in marginalized communities.”