Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1397791
36 C I N E M O N T A G E F E A T U R E NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Drama Series. The highly-anticipated sixth season will premiere this fall. This season continues DuVernay's initiative since the series' inception to hire an all-female directing team, 32 of whom made their television directorial debut on the series. This inclusive hiring extends in front of and behind the cam- era, with female department heads from casting to post-production and music supervision. For the LA-based picture editing team—all men of color—the opportunity to work on "Queen Sugar" grew out of their individual relationships with the award-winning filmmaker. "From 'Queen Sugar' writers rooms of past seasons, editors like Avril Beukes and Shannon Baker Davis have gone on to edit prominent feature f ilms," DuVernay added. "This season's editors of 'Queen Sugar'—Alexander, Alex, and Sean—continue a tradition of curiosity and creativity that has produced beau- tiful stories for this series. I'm happy to continue growing the epic saga of the Bordelons with this team." CineMontage recently got to talk with the editing team about the show's g r o u n d b r e a k i n g f i f t h s e a s o n a n d DuVernay's influence as both a mentor and activist. Q How did each of you first come to know Ava and when did you become involved with "Queen Sugar"? Peterkin: I had just gotten into scripted televi- sion. I was in reality [TV] for 12 years. I worked on "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend" just filling in, and their post-supervisor Jo- anne [McCool] knew Christiana Hooks, who is a producer on "Queen Sugar." I had an interview with her and Avril Beukes, who was my editor on "Queen Sugar" for seasons two, three, and four, and that pretty much got me into the "Queen Sugar" family and the Array family [Array is DuVernay's production/ distribution company]. I worked on the Jay-Z/Beyonce music video with Avril as well, and I continued to bridge the connections with Ava. Avril would keep Ava abreast of anything I was doing in the editorial process, so that helped build my relationship with her throughout the years. "There's this continuous thread through every season," Peterkin says. P H O T O : O W N