Short of the Day: Feels Like Summer

Are music videos considered short films? In some circumstances, I believe they are. Yesterday this site took a day off to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, however this week I will be celebrating art about the black experience. Since today is one of our days for a short, I looked up animated shorts that were primarily directed by black filmmakers. This is where this music video for Childish Gambino's song "Feels Like Summer" popped up. The song itself is about climate change and how we're too distracted to notice such important matters while the video itself distracts the viewer with famous black celebrities (thus highlighting Gambino's point).

The short is brilliant in how it presents the message while making a point about how we're too distracted by the superficial celebrity culture to notice what's hiding under our noses. However, the video is also highlighting important black celebrities who have made a difference in art and culture. When Martin Luther King, Jr. was doing the important work he was, he never saw a world in which so many black people were seen in the way they are now. This music video is an excellent visualization of that, and in that sense, it is the perfect short to watch during the week we celebrate the accomplishments of Dr. King.

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