This is an exceptional figure for a majority French documentar production (but in English) in the United States after only 3 weeks in cinemas. And now the Oscars are in its sights.
Majority produced for Raoul Peck's French firm (Velvet Film) and released by Magnolia Pictures in a very large run of 43 prints during its opening week, I Am Not Your Negro, which "explores America's irrational relationship with race", is fast becoming a phenomenon on the other side of the Atlantic.
An exceptional word-of-mouth campaign has occurred since the film's launch at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) last year - the film went on to show at other major North American film festivals (New York, Chicago, AFI FEST) - and a week of preview screenings in New York and Los Angeles in December 2016, combined with discussions and Raoul Peck's vital presence. All of this was at a crucial moment in the country's political life, set against the backdrop of the Black Lives Matter debate that brutally re-emerged in the fall: such is the context and the construction of a triumph, which the Lincoln Center in New York will not forget any time soon, with its 18 sold-out sessions during the film's opening weekend!
The film accumulated $700,000 in its first week, then $2.2 million in its second week, and has just crossed the $3 million threshold in its third week on screen, a week before the Academy Awards ceremony (the film is nominated for Best Documentary), which could further increase the film's success.
Sold by Reservoir Docs, I Am Not Your Negro has already been bought for distribution in a dozen territories.
