In 2022, interdisciplinary artist Rashaad Newsome created his most groundbreaking and visionary exhibition yet with Assembly, a multimedia extravaganza of sculpture, dance, collage, spoken word, artificial intelligence, and participatory workshops exploring Black and Queer cultures. Co-directed by Newsome and Johnny Symons, this vibrant documentary explores the inner workings of Newsome’s imagination as he took Assembly from a simple idea to a profound collaboration with dozens of other artists, creating an immersive space of empowerment.
Drawing on his lived experience as a queer Black man, Newsome’s work transcends assumptions of race, sexuality, technology, and abstract art as he guides audiences to think about the future: But one innovative avenue of exploration is building Being: The Digital Griot, a non-binary AI trained on bell hooks and revolutionary thinkers. Through its transformation of New York’s Park Avenue Armory, Assembly showcases a one-of-a-kind event built around decolonization, storytelling, and resistance.
Presented by
Media Partner
Community Partner
USA
2025
English
Book Tickets
Credits & Director
Executive Producer
Carrie Lozano
Producer
Rashaad Newsome, Johnny Symons
Cinematography
Rashaad Newsome, Keenan Newman, Johnny Symons
Editor
Ash Verwiel
Original Music
M Jamison, Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, Rashaad Newsome, Cristobal Tapia de Veer
Rashaad Newsome
Rashaad Newsome is an award-winning filmmaker, multidisciplinary artist, and innovator whose projects defy conventional boundaries. Blending film, performance, technology, and community organizing, his visionary works craft immersive experiences that challenge outdated narratives and create new spaces for Black, queer, and trans stories to thrive. Newsome’s short films have screened in arts institutions, at film festivals, and on PBS, and recent awards for his work include the 2022 Newfest Emerging Black LGBTQ+ Filmmaker Award, the 2022 Prix Ars Electronica Golden Nica Award for Computer Animation, and the 2025 Creative Capital Award.
Filmography: Build or Destroy (2021)
Photo by Jeff Vespa
Johnny Symons
Johnny Symons is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker who has directed and produced multiple award-winning LGBTQ-themed feature documentaries. His work has screened at more than 200 international film festivals and received support from funders such as Sundance, Tribeca, ITVS, Catapult, HBO, Frameline, and the California Council for the Humanities. He is a former fellow in the Sundance Institute’s Documentary Film Program and a longstanding member of New Day Films. Currently, he is a professor and MFA coordinator at the School of Cinema at San Francisco State University.
Filmography: Daddy and Papa (2002); Beyond Conception (2006); Ask Not (2008); Out Run (2016)
Photo by Luz Gallardo
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Honeyjoon
A mother and her 20-something daughter take a holiday together in the Azores to mark the anniversary of the loss of their husband and father -- but maybe the honeymoon package wasn't the best idea...
Another World
This hit anime from Hong Kong gives us an unpredictable, sometimes darkly karmic tale taking place on either side of the afterlife involving a headstrong princess with bad karma and the spirit guide who tries to help her get on a better path.
Everybody to Kenmure Street
This rousing documentary (100% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes) never puts a foot wrong as it recreates a tense, prolonged stand-off between the police and the citizens of Glasgow when an Immigration Enforcement squad attempt to arrest two men from their homes.
Thelma & Louise
In this iconic feminist road movie BFF Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon take off for a weekend getaway that turns violent when one of them is attacked. The stakes get higher as they flee the scene. Winner: Best Original Screenplay (Callie Khouri).
Boyz n the Hood
Twenty-three-year-old writer-director John Singleton's groundbreaking portrait of three young men growing up in South Central is a film of integrity and compassion. It's a far richer portrait of Black lives than Hollywood's gangsta exploitation pics.