New Black Hair Documentary: In Our Heads About Our Hair

Source: In Our Heads About Our Hair trailer

The fascination with Black hair continues, this time with filmmaker's Hemamset Angaza's documentary, "In Our Heads About Our Hair."

According to an article in Coco and Creme, the film is a humorous and candid documentary that delves into how hair is tied into self esteem and promotes acceptance of all styles. While I'll go on the record and say that more -- not less -- information about our natural hair is needed, I'd like to see the issue examined a bit further.

What About Us?
What's missing is a natural hair documentary from a Black woman's perspective. After all, when it comes to Black hair, who knows it better than Black women? Not saying that men don't have their issues -- they do -- but a woman's crown is her glory and it's a burden that we largely bear.

I know men are inextricably tied to our hair; I get that. One of my top HairNista posts that still gets the most traffic months later is about a husband threatening to leave his wife over her natural hair. Blogs about natural hair and dating -- rather, if natural hair will turn off or turn on men --will be controversial, guaranteed.

Why "Good Hair" Was A Good Start, But More Is Needed
Chris Rock's "Good Hair" a few years ago featured Black women like actresses Meagan Good and Nia Long, but it was still written, I felt, from a man's perspective. It was a good first shot, but it barely scratched the surface. Rock's Good Hair was lighthearted and a good first start, but our hair care practices extend far beyond $1,500 weaves.

I'd love to see a more historical perspective about Black hair -- there is a reason why we act the way we do when it comes to hair -- that needs to be explored to fully understand our hair struggles.And so many women are going natural that it's a topic that needs to be explored as well.

There are so many cultural "land mines" when it comes to Black hair; only now are we just starting to understand how we are affected by our hair, the systemic dislike of it that has been historically passed down for generations, and how to love our kinks, curls and coils.

In Our Heads About Our Hair will be shown at the New Voices In Black Cinema Festival at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) in February. No word on other dates in other cities.

What would you like to see in a black hair documentary? Are you a fan or not a fan of hair documentaries like Good Hair?