

The Watermelon Woman
Sometimes you have to create your own history.
A young black lesbian filmmaker probes into the life of The Watermelon Woman, a 1930s black actress who played 'mammy' archetypes.
TMDB
7.0/10
131 votes
IMDb
Not rated yet
View on IMDb
- Status
- Released
- Budget
- —
- Box office
- —
- Language
- English
- philadelphia, pennsylvania
- media
- pennsylvania, usa
- mockumentary
- race
- lgbt
- found footage
- woman director
- black history
- black lgbt
- philosophical
- media criticism
Top billed cast








Behind the camera
Where to watch
All optionsAvailability for India. Provided by JustWatch through the TMDB API.
Gallery












Videos
Release dates
United StatesUS
- PremierePhiladelphia Festival of World Cinema8 May 1996
- Theatrical5 Mar 1997
CanadaCA
- PremiereToronto International Film Festival7 Sept 1996
GermanyDE
- PremiereBerlin International Film Festival7 Feb 1996
NetherlandsNL
- Theatrical12Previously Unreleased 202625 Jun 2026
Frequently asked questions
The Watermelon Woman was released on 5 March 1997.
Audience reviews
1- C6/10
CinemaSerf
8/2/2025
In some ways this makes for quite an intriguing docu-drama on the historic roles of African American woman in cinema as the silents gave way to the talkies. Back then, many a cast member, regardless of race or sex, was given a simple title or bit part to avoid them being paid more than absolutely necessary, and one such lady that featured now and again was referred to as the “Watermelon Woman”. Almost a century later…
Member reviews
Sign in to rate and review. Browsing stays free and open.
Sign inMember comments
0Sign in to post a comment. Browsing stays free and open.
Sign in











