Rich Spirit’s critically-acclaimed, genre-defying documentary from Kahlil Joseph available across the US, Canada and UK
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions arrives on digital platforms across the US, Canada and UK on 6 March 2026, available to rent or own on all major platforms, including Apple TV, Amazon, YouTube, and Fandango at Home.
Released by independent distributor Rich Spirit, the film completed a 100-day theatrical run across more than 100 cities worldwide — a rare achievement for an experimental hybrid documentary feature that defied the expectations of a traditional limited release.
Rather than following a typical platform model, the film built momentum through collective screenings across cinemas, galleries and hybrid exhibition spaces, allowing audiences to encounter the work in shared, communal settings. This approach reframed exhibition itself — including a theatrical residency at 180 Studios in London, where the film launched the venue’s newly opened Underground Cinema space, at Lumiere Cinema in Los Angeles (100 days) and IFC Center in New York (60 days). The release ultimately evolved into a rolling cultural event, moving from city to city and engaging communities around the world rather than adhering to a conventional rollout strategy.
Directed by artist and filmmaker Kahlil Joseph and shot by Academy Award–nominated cinematographer Bradford Young, the film weaves together news clips, archival footage, scripted scenes and music to form a bold, powerful story about Black life and history.
Adapted from Joseph’s acclaimed moving-image installation first shown at the Venice Biennale, BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions mirrors the sonic structure of a record album. As Joseph’s debut feature, it unfolds as a layered examination of the Black experience, blending archive, original footage and cultural reference points into what has been described as a “fugitive newscast.”
Moving across Black history, humour, media and memory, the film interweaves fictional and historical figures, collapsing past, present and future into an immersive narrative spanning 247 years across land and sea. At its core, the work interrogates who gets to document the Black experience, how those narratives circulate, and who ultimately shapes how they are remembered.
The digital release marks the next phase of the film’s journey — moving from gallery walls and theatrical screens to audiences’ personal devices, where its layered complexity can now be experienced at home.
BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions arrives on digital platforms across the US, Canada and the UK on 6 March 2026.
Title: BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions
Format: Feature Film
Genre: Experimental / Essay Film / Hybrid Documentary
Director: Kahlil Joseph
Writer: Kahlil Joseph, Saidiya Hartman, Irvin Hunt, Kristen Adele Calhoun, Elodie Saint-Louis, Sheba Anyanwu, Madebo Fatunde
Producers: Kahlil Joseph, Amy Greenleaf, Nic Gonda, Onye Anyanwu, James Shani
Cast: Shaunette Renée Wilson, Kaneza Schaal, Hope Giselle, Peter Jay Fernandez, Penny Johnson Jerald, Zora Casebere
Country: United States
Synopsis: BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions is adapted from a video art installation by Kahlil Joseph. The work is presented as a cinematic experience structured to resemble the sonic qualities of a record album. It combines fictional and historical elements in an immersive format that features fictionalized portrayals of W. E. B. Du Bois and Marcus Garvey, alongside appearances by artists, musicians, members of Joseph’s family, and material drawn from Twitter chats, collectively forming a vision centered on Black consciousness
About Rich Spirit: Rich Spirit is a curatorial film label amplifying voices from the global diaspora through cinema, culture, and community.
Launched at the Cannes Film Festival in 2024, the label led the acquisition and rescue of The Apprentice — reclaiming Ali Abbasi’s political drama from a contentious lawsuit and shepherding it to release. Co-distributed with Briarcliff Entertainment, the film went on to receive Independent Spirit, BAFTA, Golden Globe, and Academy Award nominations for Jeremy Strong and Sebastian Stan.
Rich Spirit expanded its slate with Kahlil Joseph’s BLKNWS: Terms & Conditions, partnering with the artist to secure the film’s rights back from A24/Participant Media and bring his long-awaited debut feature to audiences worldwide.
The label will release up to four films a year while continuing to invest in original development and commissioned works.
About Khalil Joseph: Kahlil Joseph is an American filmmaker and video artist whose work stands out for its fusion of narrative cinema, music, and fine art, creating visually stunning explorations of Black culture, identity, and history. Born in Seattle in 1981, Joseph gained recognition for his innovative approach to storytelling, often using fragmented narratives, poetic imagery, and dreamlike sequences to evoke emotional depth and cultural resonance. His work blends the line between music video and art installation, making him a unique voice in contemporary visual culture.
Joseph first garnered widespread attention with his music videos for artists like Flying Lotus, Kendrick Lamar, FKA twigs, and for his significant contributions to Beyoncé’s visual album, Lemonade, where he developed a signature style that is lyrical, rhythmic, and visually experimental.
His direction of Kendrick Lamar’s m.A.A.d. (2014), a short film inspired by Lamar’s album good kid, m.A.A.d city, became a defining moment in his career, as it demonstrated his ability to fuse music with a compelling cinematic aesthetic that reflected the complexities of urban life, memory, and Black identity.In addition to music videos, Joseph has gained acclaim in the art world for his video installations, such as Double Conscience (2015) and BLKNWS (2019). Double Conscience, created for the installation of Kendrick Lamar’s m.A.A.d., was exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles and was praised for its ability to layer cultural memory, personal experience, and the socio-political realities of Black life in America.
His installation BLKNWS, which reimagines the format of a news broadcast, was shown at the Venice Biennale and Tate Modern, and critiques the representation of Black culture in mainstream media while offering an alternative, empowering narrative. Joseph’s work often centers on the African-American experience, drawing from the rich history of Black music, cinema, and everyday life. His visual language incorporates slow-motion shots, intimate portraits, and surreal imagery that evoke a sense of both nostalgia and futurism. Through his films and installations, Joseph creates a multi-sensory experience that challenges traditional forms of representation and storytelling.Kahlil Joseph’s work has been exhibited in prestigious institutions around the world, including the Tate Modern, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and the Venice Biennale. His ability to craft deeply emotional, visually captivating narratives that push the boundaries of both film and fine art has solidified his position as one of the most exciting contemporary filmmakers and video artists today.
Social Media
Instagram: @blknws @richspiritfilms
TikTok: @blknws
YouTube: @RichSpiritFilm
Hashtags: #blknws #blknwstermsandconditions
