
After a detailed restoration by organizations like UCLA Film & Television Archive, “The Annihilation of Fish” is eagerly anticipated here in Los Angeles, where it was filmed and the city that calls its director home. His films have historically faced delayed or uninterested theatrical releases. A significant player in the L.A. Rebellion, a group of SoCal filmmakers in the 1970s who focused on telling stories about Black life, Burnett directed the defining work of this movement, “Killer of Sheep” from 1977. Due to music rights issues, it took three decades for this masterpiece to receive its proper release. Currently, it ranks at No. 43 in Sight and Sound’s critics poll of the greatest films ever made. Similarly, Burnett’s 1983 drama “My Brother’s Wedding” was initially shown in an unfinished form at the New York Film Festival. However, a lukewarm critical response led to its downfall until Burnett managed to re-edit and complete it effectively in 2007.