Summer of Soul
Available on iTunes, Disney+, Hulu
Winner of the Best Documentary Critics Choice Award as well as the Grand Jury Prize and Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, SUMMER OF SOUL (…OR, WHEN THE REVOLUTION COULD NOT BE TELEVISED) is an exhilarating experience. In his acclaimed debut as a filmmaker, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson presents this powerful and transporting documentary that’s part music film and part historical record, created around an epic event that celebrated Black history, culture and fashion. Over the course of six weeks in the summer of 1969, just one hundred miles south of Woodstock, The Harlem Cultural Festival was filmed in Mount Morris Park (now called Marcus Garvey Park). The footage was largely forgotten – until now. SUMMER OF SOUL shines a light on the importance of history to our spiritual well-being and stands as a testament to the healing power of music during times of unrest, both past and present. The film includes concert performances by music legends Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly & the Family Stone, Gladys Knight and the Pips, Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, The 5th Dimension and more.
Starring Roy Ayers, Ethel Beatty-Barnes, Barbara Bland-Acosta
Director Questlove