I know it's not February but...

Black History month is over and the nation’s attention has turned away from the incredible contributions that African Americans have made to society. However, I believe that Black History should be celebrated beyond the month of February. That is why I am taking the time to recognize someone who is humbly making history in his industry of cinema and film.

I present to some and introduce to others Ryan Coogler. If you haven’t heard his name by now, you have been living under a rock. The 31 year old screenwriter and director was born in Oakland, California which happens to be the birthplace of the Black Panther Party movement. He went to college and played football at Saint Mary’s College of California with hopes to become a medical doctor. It was in a creative writing class that his gift of writing was discovered by his professor. Coogler transferred and finished up his studies at California State University, Sacramento majoring in finance. While at Sacramento State, Coogler studied his craft by taking film classes. He went on to graduate school at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts. In grad school, Coogler directed four short films. He won an award at the Tribeca Film Festival and he also won the Jack Nicholson Award for Achievement in Directing.

Coogler is known for directing what became his breakout film Fruitvale Station. This movie tells the true story of the police shooting of unarmed Oscar Grant at the Fruitvale BART station in Oakland on New Year’s morning. This film won several awards and put Coogler’s name on the map. His second film Creed is the sequel to the legendary Rocky movie series that many of us grew up watching. This movie tells the story of Apollo Creed’s son who is following in his father’s footsteps with the help of Rocky Balboa. Coogler won best director from the African American Film Critics Association and the Empire Awards for Creed. He also won the award for outstanding directing in a motion picture and outstanding writing in a motion picture from the NAACP Image Awards.

Since February 16th, Coogler has been making history with his latest release, Marvel’s Black Panther. He is the movie’s screenwriter and director. This film is about a fictional country in Africa whose cast consists of people of African descent. I believe that those of you who have taken the trip to Wakanda would agree that it is not just a film, it is also an experience. Coogler was given over 200 million dollars to make this film, the most ever given to an African American director. Now that’s history! So far, Black Panther has made $618.6 million in the United States and Canada at the box office, and $593 million in other countries, for a grand worldwide total of $1.212 billion. The Hollywood Reporter noted that this film has become the top grossing superhero film of all time in the U.S. Now that’s history!

More important than how much money Ryan Coogler’s films have grossed is the fact that he portrays African Americans and the black experience in a positive way. The response to his films like what we saw with Black Panther proves that there is a demand for quality movies to be made by, for, and about us. With each film that he creates, he provides more opportunities for African Americans to play roles on the screen and behind the scenes. Our young boys and girls have yet another individual to look up to who is modeling black excellence very well. I believe this is only the beginning for Ryan Coogler and I anticipate that his work will be recognized for many years to come. He is writing his chapter in Black History and I am excited to turn the page to see what is next!