Menelik Shabazz (30th May 1954 – 28th June 2021) was an award-winning UK film director, producer, and writer – a key pioneer in the development of contemporary black British cinema. Born in St. John, Barbados, he is known for a number of films including Burning An Illusion, Catch A Fire, The Story of Lovers Rock, Looking for Love and many others. He was also founder of and Chief Executive of SunRa Pictures, cofounder of CEDDO film collective; bfm magazine, a groundbreaking black filmmakers magazine (now re-established online as https://bfmmag.com); and the bfm International Black Film Festival based in the UK (the largest of its kind in Europe).