BY DARLENE DONLOE

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Don’t let her reserved, dramatic-actress persona fool you.

CCH Pounder is a mile-a-minute spitfire with a hearty laugh and a great sense of humor. She can have you in stitches with her witty banter one minute and have you in tears with her sensitive, affecting acting skills the next.

During an exclusive interview with Pounder, it was obvious why she was chosen as the celebrity host for this year’s upcoming Pan African Film Festival:

Pounder knows films. Pounder loves films.

Her support of the annual event is evident, consistent and sound.

It’s either her third or fourth time up at bat as the celebrity host. She’s not quite sure which. But, what she is sure about is the importance of the annual affair and how it provides an audience and gives voice to filmmakers from around the world who otherwise would have neither.

“We’re a film culture worldwide,” said Pounder, who currently stars in the megahit film, “Avatar,” the Fox television comedy, “Brothers,” and has a recurring role on the Science Fiction series, “Warehouse 13.” “We might as well get to see what the rest of the world has to offer. It’s good to see what other people are thinking.”

This year marks the 18th Annual Pan African Film Festival (Feb. 10 to 17), considered one of America’s largest and most prestigious black film and arts festivals.

Best known for showcasing a wide variety of films with varied subject matters, the PAFF will, once again, showcase films from the African Diaspora, including the United States, Canada, Europe and South America.

All films in the festival are made by or about people of African descent. The PAFF will also include an art show (Feb. 12 to 15), featuring more than 100 artists and craftspeople from around the world showcasing handmade crafts, fine art, designer jewelry and much more.

This year, the civil rights film, “Blood Done Sign My Name,” starring Nate Parker and Lela Rochon, will open the festival with a star-studded, red-carpet event at the Directors Guild of America on Feb. 10.

“I’ll be there,” Pounder said. “Whatever it takes to get the job done, I’ll do it. The festival always has a number of interesting films. It’s wonderful because we all get to see a variety of films we wouldn’t normally see.”

Pounder, who sternly ruled for seven years on the FX channel’s drama series, “The Shield,” and received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Guest Actress in a drama series for HBO’s “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency,” said it’s no secret that she’s doing exactly what she was put on Earth to do.

“I think some people are meant to go this way because they have too much energy for regular life,” said Pounder, explaining why she became an actress. “I could have been a stand-up comedian. I struck a human happy note. Although, to be honest, I’m not a very good at (being a) comedian. You can’t really count ‘Brothers.’ I just stand there and the comics get to be funny.

“I think when I was unhappy I was funny. But when I’m happy, I’m not so funny. In any case, after a while I didn’t have to find happiness because it had already arrived.”

As the celebrity host for the PAFF, founded by Executive Director Ayuko Babu, Pounder is in her element. She’s surrounded with colleagues and fans of a like mind.

There are dramatic films, short films, comedies, American-made, foreign films and more.

And although she’s deeply entrenched in the film industry, Pounder still considers herself a fan of the cinema.

“I can completely let go,” she said. “I can go inside a theater and get lost in a movie. I can still go to that place in the dark with popcorn in my hand, although I usually don’t eat it because I’m so into the movie.”

When she’s not acting, Pounder, a self-described “workaholic,” is very much an activist.

She’s passionate about a number of causes, including her latest venture, a pop-up store she opened in Santa Monica with three charities — The African Millennium Foundation (www.1amf.org), Human Rights Watch and Women’s Campaign International.

The store, at 1111 1/2 Montana Ave. in Santa Monica, has an inventory that includes pottery, embroidered work from Afghanistan, jewelry, furniture and more. Some of the proceeds go toward obtaining women’s rape kits in Los Angeles.

“I like to stay active,” Pounder said. “Whether it’s my own charitable work or being a celebrity host for the Pan African Film Festival, I’m all about staying involved. I’m looking forward to this year’s films. The festival always has fabulous films.” 

PAFF films will be showcased at the Culver Plaza Theatres, 9919 Washington Blvd., Culver City.

The art show will take place at the Westfield Culver Plaza, 6000 Sepulveda Blvd., Culver City.

For more information, visit www.paff.org or call (310) 337-4737.

BY CHARLENE MUHAMMAD

CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Back from a recent fact-finding mission to the earthquake-ravaged Haiti, Congresswoman Maxine Waters called on the Los Angeles community Jan. 31 to get more relief to the Caribbean nation — now.

While there, Waters met with Haiti President René Préval and others, who said tents are currently the number-one priority for the country, which was hit with a 7.0 earthquake on Jan. 12.

“If the people are left outdoors, all kind of disease is going to spread,” said Waters, who gave her fact-finding report to a packed room of more than 100 people at the African American Cultural Center in Los Angeles. “Already, they’re bringing the babies into the makeshift hospitals with diarrhea and dysentery. There are many conditions that people are living under that just would shock you ... The number of amputees is mind-boggling.”

Specifically, the country needs at least 250,000 Army-quality tents, fully equipped with toilet and cooking facilities, Waters said.

Waters said she is depending on black media to spread awareness about the needs for tents. She is also urging the Congressional Black Caucus to push the State Department and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help get the tents to Haiti before the rainy season, which could start in April or May.

“We’re up against some very, very serious situations,” Waters said. “For example, the rains are coming and the people are sleeping outdoors. Everybody’s homeless.

“One million people are in the parks and on the streets, with nothing but little tarps, makeshifts, little sheets ... women are birthing their babies in the park!”

She also told people to phone, fax, e-mail and write letters to their Congress members, and let them know they want an end to all unvetted adoptions of Haitian children.

Waters’ concerns were heightened by the recent arrest of 10 Americans, who attempted to bus 33 children out of the country.

“The children must be protected!” she said. “They must not be given to people simply because they claim to want to do it for humanitarian reasons. If they have not been through a process, you don’t know what their motives are, and you cannot let them go.”

According to The Associated Press, Laura Silsby, a spokesperson for the detained Americans, said they had obtained documents from the Dominican Republic’s government, but sought none from the Haitian government before taking the children, between 2 and 12 years old, to the border.

“Imagine you’re trapped under a building and somebody asks you, ‘I’ll give you the food but give me your children ... Taking them to a foreign, racist land gives them a new problem to cope with,” said Maulana Karenga, professor of Africana Studies at California State University, Long Beach, who was on stage with Waters and also talked about Haiti’s history.

Waters commended Haitian doctors in the Diaspora who converged on Haiti, set up medical facilities, and worked hard with little equipment and supplies, as best they could.

She also praised locals for helping with recovery efforts in Haiti.

“You can be proud from Los Angeles County that the Los Angeles County Search and Rescue team and the firefighters did a good job,” she said. “I was particularly moved by the saving of the 71-year-old woman that that team pulled out.”

To petition the USAID to give tents to Haiti, visit www.usaid.gov or call (202) 712-4810.