Through A Lens Darkly: Black Photographers & the Emergence of a People

I'm happy to see that the long awaited documentary Through A Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People is about to make its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival.  This is great news for anyone who's remotely interested in photography or history.  The Huffingtion Post is already calling it one of the "10 Must-See" films at this year's Sundance.

The trailer is a terrific mini-documentary on its own:

 

Through A Lens Darkly Trailer from Thomas Allen Harris on Vimeo.

And here's a bit more about the film from its makers:

"Through A Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People" is a feature length, documentary and multimedia outreach project that explores how African American communities have used the medium of photography to construct political, aesthetic, and cultural representations of themselves and their world.  This will be the first film to vividly bring to life the individual photographers and photographer collectives -- both anonymous and celebrated -- whose images and personalities helped define and transform the lives of African Americans through the magic and power of the camera lens.

"Through A Lens Darkly" incorporates both the proven traditional models of Outreach & Community Engagement as well as the emerging venues of multimedia and interactive programming.  Our strategic Distribution and Outreach plan employs an integrated 'transmedia' approach to reaching viewers.  Theatrical release in key North American cities, PBS national broadcast, Film Festival competitions, and regional community screenings will be interwoven into a rich complement of multiplatform interactive, mobile device, and web-based activities that can tap into the energy, creativity, and extended communities of our current and future television, internet, and multimedia audiences.

"Through A Lens Darkly: Black Photographers and the Emergence of a People" will be produced by an exceptional team of filmmakers, artists, scholars, and educators.  Lead by award winning director Thomas Allen Harris and noted scholar Dr. Deborah Willis, "Through A Lens Darkly" commenced a comprehensive production schedule in January 2008.

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Director: Thomas Allen Harris
Screenwriters: Thomas Allen Harris, Don Perry, Paul Carter Harrison
Producers: Thomas Allen Harris, Deborah Willis, Ann Bennett, Don Perry
Cinematographer: Martina Radwan
Editors: Kim Miille, Matthew Cohn
Composers: Vernon Reid, Miles Jay
Associate Producers: Sabrina Hawkins, Sheila Maniar
Production Associates: Sienna Pinterhughes, Natalie Shmuel

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A tip of the hat to my friend Stan Banos for letting me know about the premiere.

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Comments

[Stan B.]

"I sell the shadow to support the substance."
-Sojourner Truth

WOW!

[ciara leeming]

looks really fascinating, I look forward to being able to see it...

[shane keven reinhart]

Oh, what a wonderful post! Regardless of its reviews or Sundance recognition, I hope to see this documentary in the coming year. I've noted it in my journal of things to see, do, watch. Thanks so much for posting this!

[Alistar Harris]

Looks fascinating! Will you be organizing a screening in RVA or Charlottesville?

[John]

@Alistar

I certainly hope to screen it in Charlottesville. I'll mention it on this blog, if it happens.