Cannes Market Dailies

Richard Lawson and Tina Knowles Lawson will attend this year’s Cannes Film Festival for the special presentation of their latest feature film Black Terror directed by Richard Lawson, based on the Drama Desk Award-winning play by Richard Wesley. 

Directed by Richard Lawson and Executive Produced by Tina Knowles Lawson, Black Terror will highlight the 4th edition of the Pavillon Afriques, the first pavilion dedicated to cinema from Africa and its diaspora with 54 countries connected from 5 continents and over 3,000 participants. 

Black Terror will have a special presentation on May 23rd at the Pavillon Afriques followed by a Q&A featuring Richard Lawson and Tina Knowles Lawson. Pavillon Afriques is located at its tent in the Festival de Cannes Village International. The organization’s mission is to promote the richness of African cinema and give film professionals from the continent and the diaspora a bigger share of the global film market.

A bicoastal collaboration of WACO Theater Center and Newark Symphony Hall, Black Terror tells the story of a group of Black freedom fighters defending their community by any means. Originally produced fifty years ago, playwright and screenwriter Richard Wesley’s Black Terror returns under the bold direction of Richard Lawson. Richard Lawson is an actor, director, producer, and master teacher.  Tina Knowles Lawson is an entrepreneur, fashion designer, and philanthropist. Richard Lawson and Tina Knowles Lawson are longtime champions of art and mentorship — they are the Co-Artist Directors of the Where Art Can Occur (WACO) Theater Center. They opened the center in 2017 and each year celebrate the Wearable Art Gala, a marquee celebration in Los Angeles that serves as a multi-pronged fundraiser supporting WACO’s artistic and mentorship programs.  

Lawson’s adaptation of Black Terror shines a light on the extreme sacrifices at the center of Black liberation struggles, a topic that is still relevant 50 years after its first writing. In Black Terror, an impassioned squad of revolutionaries called the Black Comrades sets out to unshackle their people from oppression. The freedom fighters’ divergent approaches not only threaten their alliance but expose their vulnerabilities.

The film stars Tobias Truvillion (Brooklyn’s Finest), Taylor Edwards (Black-ish), Michelle Morgan (Bulworth), Lester Purry (Dead Space 2), Henri Franklin (Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice),Terryl Daluz (The System) and Nia Miranda (McGraw Ave). The film is Produced by  Steven Foley, Taneshia Nash Laird, Shay Wafer and Fetteroff Cohen. Executive Producers are Richard Lawson, Tina Knowles Lawson, Kim Taylor-Coleman, CSA, and Alta Global Media’s Theo Dumont. 

Richard Lawson has had a long and distinguished career as an actor and master teacher that spans six decades. His first professional job was in the national company of the Pulitzer Prize winning play by Charles Gordone, NO PLACE TO BE SOMEBODY. Some of the more notable performances in the following years include Drama Critics Awards for his work in MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM at the Los Angeles Theater Center (LATC) and STREAMERS directed by Milton Katselas at the Westwood Playhouse. Other memorable experiences included productions of FOOL FOR LOVE at LATC, CHECKMATES at the Westwood Playhouse, and THE EXONERATED at the Actors Gang Theater in Los Angeles. Some of his selected films include Steven Spielberg’s POLTERGEIST, Walter Hill’s STREETS OF FIRE, WAG THE DOG starring Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman, HOW STELLA GOT HER GROOVE BACK starring Whoopi Goldberg and Angela Bassett, GUESS WHO starring Bernie Mac and Ashton Kutcher, and FOR COLORED GIRLS directed by Tyler Perry. He also starred in two movies, THE ROYAL FEAST and THE ROYAL FAMILY CHRISTMAS. He co-starred in the hit series SAINTS AND SINNERS, BEING MARY JANE, REAL HUSBANDS OF HOLLYWOOD, and HBO’s ANGRY BOYS, starring Chris Lilley. He was also a series regular on THE DAYS AND NIGHTS OF MOLLY DODD, DYNASTY, and CHICAGO STORY. He is fondly remembered as Lucas Barnes on ALL MY CHILDREN. As an acting and teaching protégé of the late great Milton Katselas, one the most respected acting teachers in the world, Richard honed his skills and sharpened his abilities. Recognizing a hole in the teaching model, he went on to create one of the most cutting-edge schools – the Richard Lawson Studios (RLS). On the surface, it is an acting school. Underneath the hood, it is an empowerment academy. The RLS uses motivational and cutting-edge computer technology to impart Richard’s 48 years as a successful actor, teacher, public speaker, and drug counselor for the NBA to empower artists and professionals to achieve their dreams. Richard Lawson is represented by AMT Artists and Alta Global Media.