Faces to Watch in ’92 : These are the people Calendar’s critics and writers think you’ll be hearing about in 1992. In some cases, they’re familiar people who will experience a transitional year. Some are newcomers who could have a breakthrough year. : JOHN SINGLETON

After years of being ignored, the violence and despair of South-Central L.A. has finally invaded the national consciousness, largely thanks to the Crips, Ice-Cube, Rodney King and, oh yes, John Singleton’s film, “Boyz N the Hood.” Scarred by gang-banger rage and schooled on razor-sharp rap, Singleton squeezed drama-and insight-from the ugly turf wars of inner-city Los Angeles. Searing, self-assured and the flip side to “L.A. Story,” “Boyz” was a coming-of-age fairy tale set in a world strangled by violence. Thanks to its box-office success, Singleton is already at work on a follow-up picture. Titled “Poetic Justice,” it’s described as a female road movie (beginning in South-Central and heading north to Oakland) which could begin filming this spring for Columbia Pictures. As a bankable director, Singleton is an inspiration for up and coming African-American movie talent. He’s also a filmmaker with a unique double vision: He’s absorbed the lessons of film school, but he’s been equally shaped by South-Central’s crackle of gunfire and whir of police helicopters. At 23, Singleton is an authentic voice of a disaffected generation, tapping into the dreams and fears of urban youth.