Blue-Collar African American Life in Killer of Sheep by...

Every so often a film is made that makes a major impact on the culture of cinema. Charles Burnett with his film Killer of Sheep (2007) made that impact. The film was created by Burnett as his masters thesis from the UCLA film school in 1977, but was not formally released until 2007 (Burnett, Milestone Films). Even though it wasn’t released for almost thirty years, the film received international praise. Killer of Sheep brought to life a new image of African American cinema and created a powerful impression of life in the black ghetto. Burnett created a realistic image of African American blue-collar life in a non-traditional structure that changed African American cinema. Burnett set Killer of Sheep in the Watts neighborhood of Los†¦show more content†¦The film was shot on a very low budget of about Ten Thousand dollars (Burnett, Milestone Films). Everything was shot hands-on with life in Watts. This helped to contribute the neo-realism style of the film. The film mos tly deals with the life of Stan (Henry G. Sanders), a kind-hearted slaughterhouse worker who struggles to get anywhere in life. The film follows Stan as he goes through day-to-day life. There is no connection major story arch to scenes in the film. It is events as Stan tries to get ahead in life, but he never seems to get anywhere. This idea is solidified by the additional shots of children playing that find their place throughout the film. Killer of Sheep starts with a group of children playing war with dirt clots and hiding behind plywood scraps. These breaks to shots of children add to realism and complete image of poor African American life. The struggle isn’t just the adults, but also the children who make the best of their living situations. Burnett was able to capture African American life in a very real way that had not yet been seen in cinema. What Burnett captures about African American life in the black ghetto is feeling of running in place with no way out. Stan is never given a break. It creates the feeling of being trapped with no way out. Stan does many things throughout the film that take him nowhere. At one point in the film he attempts to take his family and friends to the horse races. On the way