There is an island off the coast of South Carolina where Africans brought to the U.S. to be slaves were kept during the Civil War to hide them from the Union Soldiers. After the war, these peopel were never brought to the mainland, and a distinct African American culture developed. Julie Dash’s Daughters of the Dust is a fictional film about the last group of these people still on the island in the early 20th century.
Daughters of the Dust is also the next film in our exploration of the Black Independent Film Movement. Guest host, filmmaker, and scholar Avril Speaks joins us once again as we familiarize ourselves with this facinating groups of films and filmmakers.
Our next episode will focus on Charles Burnett’s To Sleep With Anger. As far as we can find, the film is only available as a digital download. You might check your local libraries and video stores, but if you can’t find it, we think it’s certainly worth the cost of two fancy cups of coffee.
The theme music for our podcast is provided by Matt Lumpkin, aka Bendblock, whose music can be found here. If you are interested in subscribing to the Reel Spirituality podcast, follow this link.
