Presented by Tau Psi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc.*, in partnership with FilmScene!

4:00PM - Program introductions from producer Steven Torriano Berry
4:30PM - Within Our Gates (1920, Dir. Oscar Micheaux / 79 minutes)
5:20PM - break
5:30 - St. Louis Blues (16 minutes) and Black and Tan (19 minutes) (1929, Dir. Dudley Murphy)
6:15 - Program Q&A

Within Our Gates
"Micheaux's narrative manner unfolds the vast political dimensions of an intimate romantic crisis with flashbacks and interpolations amplifying the story; a remarkable twist regarding Slyvia's identity, slipped in at the end, opens up a nearly hallucinatory historical vortex." - New Yorker

In this 1920 silent film from Oscar Micheaux, kindly Sylvia Landry (Evelyn Preer) takes a fundraising trip to Boston in hopes of collecting $5,000 to keep a Southern school for impoverished black children open to the public. She then meets the warmhearted Dr. Vivian (Charles D. Lucas), who falls in love with Sylvia and travels with her back to the South. There, Dr. Vivian learns about Sylvia's shocking, tragic past and realizes that racism has changed her life forever.

St. Louis Blues
A woman's gambler lover leaves her for a younger woman, culminating in a performance of composer. Casts the legendary blue singer, Bessie Smith, in her only starring film.

Black and Tan
A musical short film about a couple in the performing arts; set during the contemporary Harlem Renaissance in New York City. 

*Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. is an international service organization established in 1908 as the first black sorority in the United States. Its members develop innovative programs that address significant issues in the areas of education, health, family, the arts, technology and economics. The Tau Psi Omega Chapter members represent Eastern Iowa areas of Iowa City, Cedar Rapids, Cedar Falls and Waterloo.