Photo: Courtesy of Thiago Da Costa
Shukree Tilghma, Director of Independent Lens: More Than A Month
With new programs that delve into the archives of history, this year’s February schedule provides an in-depth look at a variety of historical events from the post-Emancipation era to the rise of the black power movement. INDEPENDENT LENS will share the story of civil rights activist “Daisy Bates: The First Lady of Little Rock,” take us back to the late ‘60s and early ‘70s with “Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975” and show one filmmaker’s cross-country campaign to make black history “More Than a Month.” In addition, UNDERGROUND RAILROAD: THE WILLIAM STILL STORY will explore one man’s mission to help slaves escape to freedom; SLAVERY BY ANOTHER NAME will examine the concept of “neoslavery,” which sentenced African-Americans in the post-Emancipation South to forced labor; and FRONTLINE will present critically-acclaimed “The Interrupters,” which follows a group of former gang leaders in Chicago who try to “interrupt” violence.
Also premiering in February is GREAT PERFORMANCES “Memphis”; AN EVENING WITH VALERIE SIMPSON IN HONOR OF NICK ASHFORD, where Ms. Simpson sits down with Gwen Ifill to discuss the hit song-writing duo; and AMERICAN MASTERS will profile one of the first black musicians to tour the segregationist South in “Cab Calloway: Sketches.” PBS will also air an encore of the award-winning FREEDOM RIDERS: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, which tells the story of a courageous band of young civil-rights activists who journeyed through the Deep South in 1961.
DAISY BATES: FIRST LADY OF LITTLE ROCK
Thursday, February 2 at 10pm
As a black woman who was a feminist before the term was invented, Daisy Bates refused to accept her assigned place in society. Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock tells the story of her life and public support of nine black students to attend the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, which culminated in a constitutional crisis — pitting a president against a governor and a community against itself.
FAUBOURG TREME: THE UNTOLD STORY OF BLACK NEW ORLEANS
Sunday, February 5 at 4:00pm
New Orleans newspaperman Lolis Eric Elie takes viewers on a tour of the city in what becomes a reflection on the relevance of history folded into a love letter to his storied neighborhood, Faubourg Treme.Arguably the oldest black neighborhood in America and the birthplace of jazz, Faubourg Treme was home to the largest community of free black people in the Deep South during slavery and a hotbed of political ferment. Here, black and white, free and enslaved, rich and poor cohabitated, collaborated and clashed to create America’s first civil rights movement and a unique American culture. This program is a tale of heartbreak, hope and resiliency — all set to a soundtrack of New Orleans famous music.
ALLEN TOUSSAINT: THE SOUL OF NEW ORLEANS
Sunday, February 5 at 5:00pm
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Allen Toussaint is one of the most important musical voices to emerge from New Orleans in the latter half of the 20th century. In this intimate documentary he gives a rare solo performance on the piano for a rapt and delighted audience at Detroit’s Music Hall, and talks about the history, music and culture of his city.
UNDERGROUND RAILROAD: THE WILLIAM STILL STORY
Monday, February 6 at 10:00pm
This program tells the story of William Still, one of the most important yet unheralded individuals of the Underground Railroad. The film details the accounts of black abolitionists, who had everything at stake as they helped fugitives follow the North Star to Canada.
FREEDOM RIDERS: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE
Tuesday, February 7 at 8:00pm
FREEDOM RIDERS: AMERICAN EXPERIENCE is the powerful harrowing and ultimately inspirational story of six months in 1961 that changed America forever. From May until November 1961, more than 400 black and white Americans risked their lives — and many endured savage beatings and imprisonment — for simply traveling together on buses and trains as they journeyed through the Deep South. Deliberately violating Jim Crow laws, the Freedom Riders met with bitter racism and mob violence along the way, sorely testing their belief in nonviolent activism. Veteran filmmaker Stanley Nelson’s documentary is the first feature-length film about this courageous band of civil-rights activists. Gaining access to influential figures on both sides of the issue, Nelson chronicles a chapter of American history that stands as an astonishing testament to the accomplishment of youth and what can result from the incredible combination of personal conviction and the courage to organize against all odds.
INDEPENDENT LENS: THE BLACK POWER MIXTAPE 1967-1975
Thursday, February 9 at 10:00pm
Combining startlingly fresh and candid 16mm footage that was forgotten for the past 30 years, with contemporary audio interviews from leading African American artists, activists, musicians, and scholars, this film looks at the people, society, culture, and style that fueled an era of convulsive change.
THE PACT
Sunday, February 12 at 4:00pm
Inspired by The New York Times bestseller, THE PACT centers on the gritty and provocative true-life story of three African-American friends from Newark, New Jersey, who overcame poverty, criminal records and drug-addicted parents in their quest for a medical degree.This was no easy feat considering 50% of students in their school dropped out before the 9th grade. Today, physicians Sampson Davis and Rameck Hunt, and dentist George Jenkins, share their success stories in the hopes of motivating inner-city kids to avoid gangs and drugs and lift themselves out of poverty through education.
EVENING WITH SMOKEY ROBINSON
Sunday, February 12 at 5:00pm
Gwen Ifill talks with Smokey Robinson, giving viewers an insider’s look at the life and career of the Motown legend. The program, taped in 2009 before a theater audience at Northwestern University Thorne Auditorium, features former Motown executive and film producer Suzanne de Passe as mistress of ceremonies, with musical tributes from Grammy-nominated artists such as Teena Marie, Howard Hewett and Musiq Soulchild.
HARPIST’S LEGACY: ANN HOBSON PILOT AND THE SOUND CHANGE
Sunday, February 12 at 8:30pm
A HARPIST’S LEGACY: ANN HOBSON PILOT AND THE SOUND OF CHANGE profiles the inspirational life and distinguished career of the revered harpist. This compelling documentary follows Ann Hobson Pilot’s trailblazing journey as the first black female principal player in a major symphony orchestra and also as an international soloist, teacher, mentor and driving force behind music-education programs for underserved minorities. A HARPIST’S LEGACY uses her professional journey to explore the increasing racial diversity and shift in attitudes toward musicians of color in the classical music world.
FOR GOLD AND GLORY
Sunday, February 12 at 11:00pm
This one-hour documentary retraces a little-known chapter in American sports history: the heritage of the Gold and Glory Sweepstakes, an auto racing circuit for African-American drivers and mechanics, set against a backdrop of racial unrest in America during the 1920s and ‘ 30s. The program not only tells of the racial barriers these intrepid sportsmen had to overcome, but also examines the efforts of many whites and blacks to come together, despite the social pressures of the day, to create the largest single sporting event ever held for African Americans.
SLAVERY BY ANOTHER NAME
Monday, February 13 at 9:00pm
Based on Douglas A. Blackmon’s research into original documents and personal narratives, Slavery by Another Name unearths the lost stories of slaves and their descendants who journeyed into freedom after Emancipation and then back into involuntary servitude. It also tells stories of courage and redemption, and the men and women who fought against the re-emergence of human labor trafficking.
NOT IN OUR TOWN: CLASS ACTIONS
Monday, February 13 at 10:30pm
This program tells the stories of a suburban California school district, a mid-western college town and a college campus in the heart of the South where people are working together to stop hate and intolerance, and activitating their communities to create safer, more accepting environments for everyone. “Not In Our Town: Class Actions” profiles local innovators — a teacher who starts an anti-bullying program at her school, then spreads it to five districts; diverse leaders in a college town who bring students, local officials and community members together after a wave of bias attacks; and a coalition of students who take positive action when their core values are threatened.
INDEPENDENT LENS: MORE THAN A MONTH
Thursday, February 16 at 10:00pm
Shukree Hassan Tilghman, a 29-year-old African-American filmmaker, is on a cross-country campaign to end Black History Month. Through this tongue-in-cheek journey, “More Than a Month” investigates what the treatment of history tells us about race and equality in a “post-racial” America.
FRANKIE MANNING: NEVER STOP SWINGING
Sunday, February 19 at 5:00pm
Produced by Julie Cohen in Frankie’s last year, and released shortly after his passing, on the eve of the Frankie95 festival, this documentary is a fitting tribute to a great man. The documentary features the last major interview of Frankie Manning before his death,as well as precious archival footage of his dancing from the 1930′s to 2009 in New York, Hollywood, Sweden, France, Italy and Singapore. Footage highlights include scenes of Manning’s birthday parties, where he danced with one woman for each year he’d been alive, the legendary dance scene choreographed and headlined by Manning for the film “Hellzapoppin,” and the phenomenal duet with his 76-year-old son,Chazz, himself a professional dancer. Frankie was a born storyteller, with a huge smile and an even bigger laugh.
UNFORGETTABLE HAMPTON FAMILY
Sunday, February 19 at 5:30pm
Unforgettable Hampton Family, a documentary exploring how Deacon Clark Hampton, a son of slaves, lifted his twelve children out of poverty by making them into successful musicians.
INDIANA LEGENDS: MADAM C.J. WALKER: TWO DOLLARS AND A DREAM **LOCAL PROGRAM**
Sunday, February 19 at 11:00pm
“Indiana Legends: Madam C.J. Walker – Two Dollars and a Dream” is a story of the first woman in history to start with nothing and earn her own million-dollar fortune. This pioneering businesswoman is an inspiring illustration of a rags-to-riches existence.
GREAT PERFORMANCES: MEMPHIS
Friday, February 24 at 9:00pm
Winner of the 2010 Tony Award for Best New Musical, “Memphis” turns the radio dial back to the 1950s to tell the story of a white DJ named Huey Calhoun (Chad Kimball), whose love of music transcends racial lines and airwaves. His romantic interest is Felicia Farrell (Montego Glover), a young black singer whose career is on the rise, but who can’t make the break out of segregated clubs on her own. When the two collaborate, her soulful sound reaches radio audiences everywhere, and the golden era of early rock & roll takes flight. But as things heat up, whether the world is really ready for their music – and their love – is put to a test. With a Tony-winning book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro (“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change”) and Tony-winning score with music by Bon Jovi founding member David Bryan,the production is directed by Christopher Ashley (“Xanadu”) and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo (“Jersey Boys”).
WHY I SING AMAZING GRACE: THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN WORSHIP EXPERIENCE **LOCAL PROGRAM**
Sunday, February 26 at 5:30pm and 11:30pm, March 1 at 11:00 p.m.
Join WTIU’S Shameka Neely on February 7th from 7-9p.m. at Bloomington’s Second Street Baptist Church, located at 321 North Rogers for A panel discussion regarding WTIU’S 30 minute documentary Why I Sing Amazing Grace: The African-American Worship Experience. The documentary will examine the history of the worship experience. For more than two centuries African-American churches have served as a means of inspiration and hope, and emphasized the meaning of individual transformation. The call to worship can vary from denomination to denomination, but many of the same spiritual traditions have lived in the black church for centuries. The documentary and the talk will explore topics of spirituality, rituals, power and leadership in the black church.
COLORED FRAMES
Sunday, February 26 at 8:00pm
COLORED FRAMES reflects on the last 50 years in African-American art by exploring the influences, inspirations and experiences of black artists. Beginning at the height of the Civil Rights Era and leading up to the present, it provides a truthful, unflinching look at often-ignored artists and their progeny. Impressionistic video collages showcase the wide variety, both thematically and stylistically, of contemporary pieces of black artists working in the genres of illustration, abstraction and surrealism, among others. COLORED FRAMES also chronicles the black artist’s struggle for visibility and acceptance in mainstream art society as well as their experiences challenging assumptions about what constitutes “blackness,” even within their own community.
AMERICAN MASTERS: CAB CALLOWAY: SKETCHES
Monday, February 27 at 10:00pm
“Hi de hi de hi de ho …,” the popular refrain from Minnie the Moocher, was his signature song, and Harlem’s famous Cotton Club was his home stage. A singer, dancer and band leader, he was an exceptional figure in the history of jazz — a consummate musician, he charmed audiences across the world with boundless energy, bravado and elegant showmanship. His back glide dance step is the precursor to Michael Jackson’s moonwalk, and his scatting lyrics find their legacy in today’s hip-hop and rap. An ambassador for his race, Calloway was the first black musician to tour the segregationist South, as early as 1932. At the top of his game in the jazz and swing eras of the ’30s and ’40s, he toured as Sportin’ Life in “Porgy and Bess,” forever putting his personal stamp on “It Ain’t Necessarily So.” His career flagged until he was rediscovered in the 1980′s “Blues Brothers” and even on “Sesame Street,” becoming a new cult hero of sorts.
SCARRED JUSTICE: THE ORANGEBURG MASSACRE 1968
Sunday, February 12 at 1:00pm
On February 8, 1968, eight seconds of police gunfire left three African-American students dying and 27 wounded on the campus of South Carolina State College at Orangeburg. The shooting capped off four days of student protests over the desegregation of the city’s only bowling alley. Often termed “the Kent State of the South,” and pre-dating it by two years, the shooting marked the first time in U.S.history that police opened fire on students. Through interviews and archival material, SCARRED JUSTICE examines the tumultuous events of that day from a variety of perspectives and follows the ongoing efforts to seek justice for the victims.
SHEARS TO TEARS **LOCAL PROGRAM**
Sunday, February 26 at 5:00pm
The barbershop has been an American institution long associated with service and frank discussion. But for many it is an open forum for race relations, community and emotional support. This program was created by an Indiana University Telecommunications class.
