nullScheduled to make its world premiere at the upcoming 18th annual Urbanworld Film Festival (September 17-21), is Nefertite Nguvu’s ensemble drama "In The Morning" – an indie feature film long-time S&A readers will remember (we first featured it on this site 2 years ago while the filmmakers sought to raise funds for the project).

The film’s journey is now on its tail-end, entering the next phase of the production/distribution/exhibition process, as it screens for the first time publicly, on Saturday, September 20th at 8pm, at AMC Theaters 34th Street, here in New York City.

Described as a mood piece that weaves together 3 stories of personal growth and the power of choice and action, Nguvu’s "In The Morning" examines the complexities of love from the perspectives of 3 women living in New York, in the midst of some hard-won self-transformation.

Further…

Friends, Harper, Ravi, Fez, Bly and Amara, gather to bid farewell to one of their own moving abroad, and debate the compromise and loss of their youthful ideals about marriage, fidelity, life and love; 2 lovers, Malik and Cadence, meet to ceremoniously end a whirlwind romance that has collapsed under the weight of fears, obligations and regrets; A couple, Zuri and Leal, sift through the remains of their broken relationship as they try to make a life altering decision, journeying through the bitter heartbreak that comes with faded love, disintegrated trust, and dreams abandoned. For everyone, life will be indelibly altered in the morning.

The film stars several familiar names and faces, including Emayatzy Corinealdi, Numa Perrier, Kim Hill, JoNell Kennedy, De’adre Aziza, Jacky Ido, Hoji Fortuna and newcomers C.J. Lindsey as Leal, and Alzo Slade, both making their film debuts.

Ahead of the its world premiere, S&A has been granted your exclusive first-look at the film, via its first trailer, which is embedded below.

The 18th Annual Urbanworld Film Festival (www.urbanworld.org), presented by BET Networks with founding sponsor HBO, runs from September 17-21, 2014 at Manhattan’s AMC Loews 34th Street 14, and various other locations in New York. It’s set to screen over 70 films, including a whopping 12 world premieres. 

"Beyond the Lights," the latest from writer/director Gina Prince-Bythewood, will serve as the opening night film on Thursday, September 18 at the SVA Theater, at 333 W. 23rd Streette

Other screening highlights of films we’ve previously covered on this blog include: "Difret," directed by Zeresenay Berhane Mehari (Ethiopia), "SODIQ," directed by Adeyemi Michael (UK), "The Hip-Hop Fellow," directed by Kenneth Price, making its NYC premiere (USA), "God Loves The Fighter," directed by Damian Marcano, making its NYC (Trinidad & Tobago), and several others, including, of course, "In the Morning," directed by Nefertite Nguvu, which will be making its world premiere (USA).

Watch the atmospheric trailer below: