[dropcap]I[/dropcap]n the black community there is a thing about ‘airing dirty laundry’, we aren’t permitted by ourselves to talk about anything negative because it’s so easily taken out of context and very painful for us.” For Numa Perrier, co-founder of independent television network Black&Sexy TV, the importance of providing a platform to portray a nuanced, multifaceted, and above all, authentic representation of the African-American community, is essential to the creative integrity of the channel. A spin-off venture from Dennis Dortch’s 2008 Sundance film A Good Day to be Black & Sexy, Perrier states the aims of the channel are simple: “To see ourselves. To create content that reflects us day to day with all the humour, intimacy, and swagger that we naturally have.” Shows such as Roomieloverfriends, HelloCupid, Yellow and The Couple, attest to this manifesto, depicting the precarious nature of dating trials and tribulations of relationships and how this interacts with prejudices within the African-American community. Moreover, it isn’t just the engaging content, but the innovative business techniques that have succeeded in creating a truly refreshing approach to television, bringing a fictional world vigorously to life. One such approach is the use of special “mash-up” episodes in which characters and their plot trajectories from shows such as Roomieloverfriends and HelloCupid intersect and interact with each other and which Perrier believes emphasises its authenticity, “Having the characters overlap makes it more like real life and our commitment is to reflect real life.”
“Sometimes I think men would let go of some of these strict gender roles if they felt safe enough to do so, but many years of conditioning yields them to behave in a different way.”
Such reflections are evident in the docu-series Yellow: The Pleasures and Problems of the Light-Skinned Black Man, which Perrier created and admits, “touched a lot of nerves”. As the title suggests, the series follows Austin and his pursuit of romance as well as navigating through everyday life amidst the prejudices and assumptions amongst African-Americans as well as society in general. In several episodes, the issue of black female preference towards a darker-skinned black man is brought humorously to the fore, and whilst Perrier received backlash for this, she is adamant that it is crucial that these issues are explored and interrogated especially with humour. “That was the intention from the start — to flip it on its head and show how we look at each other and why, and examine where all of that comes from, and how it affects each and every one of us.” On the flipside of this, whilst Austin struggled in the romance department due to his light skin, the series highlighted white preference towards light skinned men within the workplace — favoritism encapsulated by the interviewer’s use of the term “polite”. Perrier mentions the overwhelming response by fans “who understand exactly what the interviewer meant [in that] Austin is considered safe and pleasant, therefore he is a more likely candidate to be hired and move up the ranks in the corporate world”.
Whilst Perrier works as director of programming and development, bringing projects from script to screen, she also writes and stars in The Couple, a show charting the ups and downs of the relationship between Chick (Perrier) and Dude (Desmond Faison) as they navigate their space and identity as a couple living together. The show depicts the multitude of grey areas that exist within relationships, old and new, such as the invasion of a partner’s privacy. Perrier states that this adds realism to the series, “It’s the key to everything. Real relationships have jealously and psychology games! … To trust or not to trust — to snoop or not to snoop? It’s hilarious.” Perrier admits that the premise of some episodes are based on real life events, which leads to the question of how closely the character of Chick is based on Perrier, “I have a lot in common with Chick […] I have an obnoxious streak and a short fuse… I’m messy — I’m no good as a housewife. I’m creative and if you can deal with the rest, pretty fun to be around.” Indeed Chick’s creativity is evident in Perrier’s own hobbies which have gained her much within the fashion industry, being the go-to glove designer for Rihanna and other celebrities as well as television show costume departments, “I know that I will come back to glove design and other types of design as well […] I’m creative — it just takes on so many forms.” The show’s portrayal of Chick as a modern women unfettered by conventional gender roles is humorously contrasted to that of Dude and the rigidity of which he adheres to the construction of masculine identity. Is this an aspect that Perrier was eager to subject to interrogation? “Sometimes I think men would let go of some of these strict gender roles if they felt safe enough to do so, but many years of conditioning yields them to behave in a different way.”
The show’s humour and realistic portrayal of modern cohabitation, especially within the black community, has garnered Perrier and the show’s other co-creators, Dennis Dortch and Jeanine Daniels, a deal with HBO which Perrier credits their mission statement of self representation, “We are doing something different. You can find real black people in love at various stages, figuring it out on Black&Sexy TV.” At the helm of this development with HBO is Spike Lee as executive producer, with whom Perrier has worked previously, having helped Lee raise $1.4 million for his Kickstarter campaign. Will the show continue in the same direction under the peerage of HBO? “We want to stay as true to the web series as possible. HBO also wants this — keep the authenticity. That’s what we are working on as we expand the world for a larger and higher budget format.”
Perrier’s talent knows no bounds, and the expansion of The Couple is just one of many creative feats for the creator, producer and actor. Currently working on a script about American playwright and actor Lorraine Hansberry, the first black woman to write a play performed on Broadway, Perrier declares her intention to represent the woman behind the icon in what she calls an “unconventional approach to the storytelling”. Also on the cards for Perrier is the role of Diana, a woman struggling to accept the harsh reality of adulthood, in Rachel Benjamin’s project According to Diana, something which Perrier is extremely excited about, “the role of Diana is beautifully flawed and hilarious and I can’t wait to play her”.
