Project Detail

Pauline Black: A 2-Tone Story

Synopsis

A documentary that looks intimately at the incredible life story that shaped an iconic female musician who defined an era - The Selecter’s Pauline Black.
Pauline Black goes on an odyssey looking at her personal experience of identity and how it has informed her life and art. The Two Tone movement was the perfect setting for Pauline with her mixed British, Nigerian and Jewish heritage. It was the catalyst that allowed her to explore and express all sides of herself and figure out who she is. Looking at her own groundbreaking experience, Pauline traces how her legacy is relevant to the world around her today where modern society pushes the boundaries of gender, politics, race and identity.
“More than anything I wanted my family to finally say my name, Pauline Black. They could never bring themselves to say the B word. After years of being called half-caste or coloured, I could say it loud and proud, Pauline Black. I wanted to assert my new identity, fashioned in my own image, not somebody else’s idea of who I should be. My rebirth was complete. The ‘rude girl’ I had invented had a new name, Pauline Black.”
Official Selection BFI London Film Festival 2024 - World premiere
Official Selection CPH:DOX 2025 - International premiere

Details

Year
2024
Type of project
Features
Running time
90 min
Format
HD /Tape
Director
Jane Mingay
Producer
Nikki Parrott
Executive Producer
Natasha Dack, Mark Thomas
Editor
Nick Webb, Zeb Anchou
Screenwriter
Jane Mingay, Pauline Black
Composer
Sam Lewis
Principal cast
With contributions from: Pauline Black, Don Letts, Arthur Hendrickson

Categories

Production Status

Production Company

Sales Company

Page updates

This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.

See also

You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.

Mr. Nobody Against Putin Mr. Nobody Against Putin

Director: David Borenstein (director), Pavel Talankin (co-director)

Year: 2025

A Russian teacher secretly documents his small town school's transformation into a war recruitment center during the Ukraine invasion, revealing the ethical dilemmas educators face amid propaganda and militarization. Official Selection Sundance Film Festival 2025 - World premiere Official Selection CPH DOX 2025 Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2025 BAFTA Awards 2026 - Winner - Best Documentary Academy Awards 2026 - Winner - Best Documentary Feature

A Few Moments of Happiness (Quelques instants de bonheur) A Few Moments of Happiness (Quelques instants de bonheur)

Director: Shaden Safieddine Tazi

Year: 2026

A young Lebanese filmmaker in Paris watches Lebanon's war unfold on her phone from bed. In a state of paralysis, barely able to get out of bed, she calls her father everyday and begins recording her digital life. Using screen recordings, family voices, and silences, the film intimately portrays a generation witnessing their homeland's destruction remotely. Official Selection Venice International Film Festival 2026 - World premiere

Test Track (Tesztpálya) Test Track (Tesztpálya)

Director: Lydia Cornett

Year: 2026

At dawn in Western Hungary, 14-year-old Hunor and his family use greyhounds to clear wildlife from ZalaZONE, a cutting-edge autonomous vehicle test track. Their traditional methods serve an increasingly militarized future. Official Selection Venice International Film Festival 2026 - World premiere