The Pompano Beach Cultural Center is proud to announce comedy TV star Carl Payne as host of the next Pompano Stand-up Live! on Saturday, November 2 at 8 p.m. Joining the former Martin star will be an outstanding lineup of comedians including the show’s opener Wanda Smith, fast-rising star Brandon Smiley and headliner Tony Tone.

    Based on a true story, The Banker centers on revolutionary businessmen Bernard Garrett (Anthony Mackie) and Joe Morris (Samuel L. Jackson), who devise an audacious and risky plan to take on the racist establishment of the 1960s by helping other African Americans pursue the American dream. Along with Garret’s wife Eunice (Nia Long), they train a working-class white man, Matt Steiner (Nicholas Hoult), to pose as the rich and privileged face of their burgeoning real estate and banking empire – while Garrett and Morris pose as a janitor and a chauffeur.

     The opening of Tyler Perry’s film studio in Atlanta over the weekend was a joyous but bittersweet occasion as the filmmaker intended to honor pioneering actress Diahann Carroll before her untimely passing.

     Black artists, filmmakers and films were a key part of the mix. Big budget movies, small indie films, documentaries and shorts filled out the innovative programming. Check out the best of the best and the most noteworthy.