The Watermelon Woman
“Sometimes you have to create your own history.”
Synopsis
A young black lesbian filmmaker probes into the life of The Watermelon Woman, a 1930s black actress who played 'mammy' archetypes.
Trailers, Teasers & Extra Featurettes
Official promotional previews, behind-the-scenes footage, and exclusive clips.
Trailer
Type: Trailer • Published 2023-05-04
Top Cast
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Cheryl Dunye
Cheryl
Guinevere Turner
Diana
Valarie Walker
Tamara
Lisa Marie Bronson
Fae "The Watermelon Woman" Richards
Cheryl Clarke
June Walker
Irene Dunye
Self
Brian Freeman
Lee Edwards
Ira Jeffries
Shirley Hamilton
Alexandra Juhasz
Martha Page
Camille Paglia
Self
Sarah Schulman
CLIT Archivist
V.S. Brodie
Karaoke Singer
Shelley Olivier
Annie Heath
David Rakoff
Librarian
Toshi Reagon
Street Musician
Christopher Ridenhour
Bob
Kat Robertson
Yvette
Jocelyn Taylor
Stacey
Release History & Theatrical Window
Toronto International Film Festival
Festival / Special Debut
March 5, 1997
Wide Cinema Exhibition
Key Information & Fast Facts
- Director
- Cheryl Dunye
- Screenplay & Story
- Cheryl Dunye, Douglas McKeown
- Original Score
- Paul Shapiro
- Original Title
- The Watermelon Woman
- Country of Origin
- United States of America
- Spoken Languages
- English
- Runtime
- 1h 25m
- Production Studios
- Dancing Girl
Creative Leadership & Key Crew
Cheryl Dunye
Cheryl Dunye, Douglas McKeown
Paul Shapiro
Michelle Crenshaw
Annie Taylor, Cheryl Dunye
Michael Light, Barry Swimar, Alexandra Juhasz
Department Leadership Roster
Cheryl Dunye
Director
Luciana Moreira
Costume Design
Robert Holtzman
Production Design
Solomon Wise
Costume Design
Annie Taylor
Editor
Cheryl Dunye
Writer
Barry Swimar
Producer
Cheryl Dunye
Editor
Alexandra Juhasz
Producer
Paul Shapiro
Original Music Composer
Michelle Crenshaw
Director of Photography
Production Stills & Gallery
Official cinematic photography and background stills for The Watermelon Woman.
Featured In Curated Collections
Editorial lists, community rankings, and cinematic collections featuring The Watermelon Woman.
S&S Critics - Greatest Films
Sight and Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2022 (Critics' Poll). Every decade the Sight and Sound team asks critics to name the greatest films of all time. Here are the results of the 2022 poll – the largest ever, with 1,639 critics, programmers, curators, archivists and academics each submitting their top ten ballot - and now updated with the complete list. 《视与听》2022年影评人评选影史百大电影（含并列完整版）： 由 1639 位影评人、策展人及学者共同票选的影史最伟大电影。 *注：榜单源数据中包含部分剧集/迷你剧，由于本片单只收录纯电影，故不再收录以下非电影条目：* • [#152] Twin Peaks: The Return (2017) • [#171] Out 1 (1971) *(Updated via Automated ETL Pipeline: 2026-10-19 07:36:35 UTC+8)*
TSPDT - 1000 Greatest Films
They Shoot Pictures, Don't They? (TSPDT) - The 1,000 Greatest Films. A definitive meta-list aggregating thousands of critics' polls, historical rankings, and director top 10s to represent the ultimate critical consensus in cinema history. TSPDT 影史最伟大的1000部电影： 全球最权威的电影元榜单，由该网站汇总世界各大电影刊物历史评选结果及数千名影评人、学者的个人十佳榜单，通过算法加权计算得出的终极共识。 *片单说明：* 本片单只收录纯电影，以下剧集或迷你剧不予收录： • [#335] Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) • [#514] Twin Peaks: The Return (2017) • [#614] Edvard Munch (1974) • [#703] The Sorrow and the Pity (1969) • [#890] Elephant (1989) • [#925] Heimat (1984) • [#968] Doomed Love (1978) 以下作品在 TMDB 被拆分为多个独立电影条目；本片单按作品/章节顺序连续收录，且每个分拆条目均沿用同一 TSPDT 名次： • [#171] Dekalog (1989) — 展开为 10 部电影 • [#988] Olympia (1938) — 展开为 2 部电影 *(Updated via Automated ETL Pipeline: 2026-10-19 07:33:14 UTC+8)*
Criterion Collection
The Complete Criterion Collection. The Criterion Collection is a video distribution company that sells 'important classic and contemporary films' in editions that offer the highest technical quality. This list contains only the featured films released on DVD, BluRay and 4K Criterion releases — no supplements are included. Organized by spine number with the newest releases first. CC标准收藏完整收录版： 收录标准收藏（Criterion Collection）发行的重要经典及当代电影。仅包含正片（涵盖 DVD、蓝光及 4K 版本），已排除花絮补充内容。按 CC 发行编号倒序排列（最新发行在前）。 *注：榜单源数据中包含部分剧集/迷你剧，由于本片单只收录纯电影，故不再收录以下非电影条目：* • [#214] Mangrove (2020) • [#215] Lovers Rock (2020) • [#216] Red, White and Blue (2020) • [#217] Alex Wheatle (2020) • [#486] Eight Hours Don’t Make a Day (1972) • [#647] Dekalog (1989) • [#944] World on a Wire (1973) • [#1187] Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980) • [#1338] Fanny and Alexander (1984) • [#1341] Tanner '88 (1988) • [#1371] Scenes from a Marriage (1973) *注：以下影片因 TMDB 尚未收录，暂不在此片单中展示：* • [#531] First (2012) • [#1699] Ulysse (1983) *(Updated via Automated ETL Pipeline: 2026-10-11 07:39:08 UTC+8)*
LGBTQ+
Auto-filled from Letterboxd lists
MNR
(Movies) LGBTQ Themes
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Frequently Asked Questions About The Watermelon Woman
Quick factual answers about cast, synopsis, director, box office, and release information.
What is The Watermelon Woman about?
A young black lesbian filmmaker probes into the life of The Watermelon Woman, a 1930s black actress who played 'mammy' archetypes.
Who directed The Watermelon Woman?
The Watermelon Woman was directed by Cheryl Dunye.
Who stars in The Watermelon Woman?
The principal cast of The Watermelon Woman includes Cheryl Dunye, Guinevere Turner, Valarie Walker, Lisa Marie Bronson, Cheryl Clarke.
When was The Watermelon Woman released and how long is it?
The Watermelon Woman was released in 1997 with a total runtime of 1h 25m.
Who composed the musical score for The Watermelon Woman?
The original motion picture soundtrack for The Watermelon Woman was composed by Paul Shapiro.