Reel Unity Pair: Thumbs Up for Mother Universe / This Land

This Land

Runner and advocate Faith E. Briggs used to run through the streets of Brooklyn every morning. Now, she’s running 150 miles through three U.S. National Monuments that lay in the thick of the controversy around public lands. Accompanied by running companions who represent diverse perspectives in what it means to be a public land owner, she assesses what is at stake if previously protected lands are reduced and if the public is largely unaware. THIS LAND is a story about land access told through a journey of inclusion and empowerment. 

Thumbs Up for Mother Universe

This feature-length documentary traces the dramatic life of Lonnie Holley from the garbage dumps and prison camps of Jim Crow Alabama to the music stages and art museums of the world. Along the way, the film reveals the spirituality of Holley’s creative process; his insights into conservation, ecology and the environment; and his deep sources of inspiration rooted in southern life and African American history and culture.

Lonnie B. Holley has been described as an outsider, a poet, a con man, a prophet, a hustler, a visionary artist, a junkman and a shaman. Foremost, the 69-year-old African American artist and musician from Birmingham, Alabama is an American original. Born the seventh of 27 children, Holley’s childhood is the stuff of novels.

2020 BIBFF

7th Annual Baltimore International Black Film Festival - Teaser