Our top VOD recommendation for this week is “Mississippi Damned,” an intense social drama that has been supported by “Selma” director Ava DuVernay’s ARRAY and now available on Netflix. If you’re looking for slightly lighter fare, comedy-drama “Bread and Butter” centers on an anxious and sexually inexperienced female protagonist. “6 Years” portrays college students who have plenty of sexual and romantic experience, but only with one another. Writer-director Hannah Fidell offers an intricately observed and largely improvised tale of young lovers whose relationship is put to the test in the wake of imminent adulthood: Is settling down with their single long-term partner settling for less?

VOD

Mississippi Damned — Directed and Written by Tina Mabry

Thanks to the efforts of inspiring filmmaker Ava Duvernay and her ethnic minority-focused distribution company Array (originally AFFRM), Tina Mabry’s profound directorial debut “Mississippi Damned” is now available on Netflix. The film follows the lives of three young, impoverished African Americans as they attempt to extricate themselves from their “damned” Mississippi roots and class restraints. “I’ve always felt there are so many films that get made but not seen,” Duvernay has said, “And this is a problem I can do something about because of my experience.” As a result, Mabry’s family drama now has the platform it deserves.

Bread and Butter — Directed and Written by Liz Manashil

Liz Manashil’s endearing dramedy follows neurotic 30-year-old Amelia (Christine Weatherup), as she tumbles into an emotional journey of amusing mishaps and awkward moments. The film, now available on VOD, is a light-hearted story that explores the life and love of a woman caught up in a romantic pursuit of two potential love interests, while propped up by her close pal Deirdre (played by Lauren Lapkus from “Orange is the New Black”).

6 Years — Directed and Written by Hannah Fidell

Hannah Fidell’s romantic drama explores the unraveling of a long-term relationship between young couple Melanie (Taissa Farmiga) and Dan (Ben Rosenfield), and the heartbreak that ensues. In an interview with Women and Hollywood Fidell explained, “It’s too easy to go through this world being told to keep our emotions in check, as if they inhibit us in some way or another. I hope that this film can act as a sort of mirror, serve some cathartic purpose.” Mission accomplished — Fidell was successful in pulling our heartstrings.