Jamaa Fanaka was an American filmmaker He is best known for his 1979 film Penitentiary and is one of the leading directors of the LA Rebellion film movement The LA Rebellion film movement sometimes referred to as the Los Angeles School of Black Filmmakers or the UCLA Rebellion refers to the new generation of young African and AfricanAmerican filmmakers who studied at the UCLA Film School in the late1960s to the late1980s and have created a quality Black Cinema that provides an alternative to classical Hollywood cinema Fanaka died on April 1 2012