An action-horror hybrid film with social conscience notes and a biting sense of humor, “Black as Night” stars Asjha Cooper, Fabrizio Guido, Keith David, Mason Beauchamp, Frankie Smith, and Craig Tate. The film was directed by Maritte Lee Go. Taking place 15 years after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, “Black as Night” centers around Shawna (Cooper), a resourceful teenager who goes into battle against a group of deadly vampires posing a new threat that leaves its mark on the Big Easy — in the form of puncture wounds on the throats of the city’s vulnerable, displaced population.

After Shawna’s mom, who also battles drug addiction, becomes the latest target of the undead, the 15-year-old vows to settle the score. Along with three trusted friends, Shawna hatches a plan to infiltrate the vampires’ mansion in the French Quarter, where she plots to destroy their leader and turn his fanged disciples back into human form. Killing undead monsters is a task that’s easier said than done, and before long Shawna and her crew find themselves caught in a centuries-old conflict between cliques of warring vampires, each fighting to claim New Orleans as their permanent home.

In an interview with Screen Rant, Cooper shared why she was instantly drawn to the film. “What really resonated with me was Shawna’s character,” explained Cooper. “When I read it, I just felt like I was like reading a younger version of myself; all of her insecurities and issues of colorism [are] everything that I dealt with when I was younger.” She continued, “Literally in the first scene when you’re first introduced to her when she’s on the rooftop and she’s trying to cover her skin so the sun doesn’t hit her and she doesn’t get darker, that was my entire high school experience; not wanting to be outside during football games, even if it was 5 p.m. during the day. So just those little moments I just was like, ‘Wow,’ I felt really seen when I was reading this script and I just really wanted to be a part of the project.”

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