{"id":45811,"date":"2021-07-13T09:04:38","date_gmt":"2021-07-13T09:04:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/?post_type=articles&#038;p=45811"},"modified":"2024-09-15T00:28:50","modified_gmt":"2024-09-15T00:28:50","slug":"restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/","title":{"rendered":"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-columns article-content is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow\" style=\"flex-basis:100%\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"630\" data-attachment-id=\"45797\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/0summer_of_soul_-_sly_stone-_courtesy_of_mass_distraction_media_1-lr-1200x630\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1200,630\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-title=\"0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200&amp;#215;630\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"&lt;p&gt;Sly Stone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures&lt;\/p&gt;\n\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1024%2C538&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/1_0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?resize=1200%2C630&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Sly Stone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45797\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sly Stone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SUMMER OF SOUL | Official Trailer | In Theaters and on Hulu July 2\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/slFiJpAxZyQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Forget about \u201chot vaxx summer,\u201d and get ready for the <em>Summer of Soul<\/em>. Now streaming on Hulu, and in theaters in a limited release from Searchlight Pictures, <em>Summer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)<\/em> is the documentary you never knew you needed. Assembled from more than 40 hours of recently unearthed footage shot over the course of six weekend events in New York City, <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> chronicles the forgotten history of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival held in what is now known as Marcus Garvey Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>The New Yorker<\/em>\u2019s film critic, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2021\/07\/05\/questloves-summer-of-soul-pulses-with-long-silenced-beats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Anthony Lane<\/a>, notes that \u201chalfway through a heavy year, the best movie so far \u2014 the one most likely to ease the load and lift you up \u2014 is <em>Summer of Soul<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The film offers \u201cnot a state of bliss,\u201d Lane writes, \u201cbut a precious, precarious interlude of release and relief, before the pressures of an unequal society kicked back in. History chose to commemorate Woodstock, which unfolded a hundred miles or so away, in the heat of the same summer. But history, as so often, went to the wrong gig.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SUMMER OF SOUL | Gladys Knight &amp; The Pips | &quot;I Heard It Through The Grapevine&quot; Clip\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_4kVn3xqxw0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorker.com\/magazine\/2021\/07\/05\/questloves-summer-of-soul-pulses-with-long-silenced-beats\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Questlove\u2019s \u201cSummer of Soul\u201d Pulses with Long-Silenced Beats (The New Yorker)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The project, which won both the US Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award in the US Documentary category at this year\u2019s Sundance Festival, is the acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson. It includes never-before-seen concert performances by Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly &amp; the Family Stone, Gladys Knight &amp; the Pips, Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, The 5th Dimension, and more. By way of intimate, newly restored footage, and recent interviews with attendees and the artists who performed, <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> documents the moment when the old school of the Civil Rights movement and the new school of the Black Power movement shared the same stage, highlighted by an array of genres including soul, R&amp;B, gospel, blues, jazz, and Latin.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"540\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/062_08_ABBEY_LINCOLN_1-1adj-LR.jpg?resize=540%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Abbey Lincoln performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45804\" style=\"width:255px;height:340px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Abbey Lincoln performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSometimes these archival-footage documentaries don\u2019t know what they\u2019ve got,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/06\/24\/movies\/summer-of-soul-review.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Wesley Morris<\/a> opines in his review for <em>The New York Times<\/em>. \u201cThe footage has been found, but the movie\u2019s been lost. Too much cutting away from the good stuff, too much talking over images that can speak just fine for themselves, never knowing \u2014 in concert films \u2014 how to use a crowd. The haphazard discovery blots out all the delight. Not here. Here, the discovery becomes the delight. Nothing feels haphazard.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Summer of Soul<\/em> contains many remarkable performances, but it\u2019s the film\u2019s juxtaposition of concert footage with archival news footage, layered with audio interviews from performers and attendees, that makes it more than the sum of its parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOn one hand, this is just cinema,\u201d Morris writes. \u201cOn the other, there\u2019s something about the way that the editing keeps time with the music, the way the talking is enhancing what\u2019s onstage rather than upstaging it. In many of these passages, facts, gyration, jive and comedy are cut across one another yet in equilibrium. So, yeah: cinema, obviously. But also something that feels rarer: syncopation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SUMMER OF SOUL | Musa Jackson &amp; The 5th Dimension Clip\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/r_IpzCkrG-A?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/06\/24\/movies\/summer-of-soul-review.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u2018Summer of Soul\u2019 Review: In 1969 Harlem, a Music Festival Stuns (The New York Times)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The decision to intersperse the concert footage with present-day interviews with the artists and attendees didn\u2019t come to Thompson until late in the process, he told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmagazine.com\/arts-entertainment\/2021\/06\/why-it-took-50-years-for-the-harlem-cultural-festival-to-get-its-cinematic-due\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Todd Jorgenson<\/a> in an interview for <em>D Magazine<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the most touching interview subjects is cultural entrepreneur Musa Jackson, whose earliest childhood memories were of attending the festival at the age of five. \u201cThe emotional component of the film was something I wasn\u2019t prepared for,\u201d said Thompson. \u201cOnce we showed him the footage, the tears started welling. He didn\u2019t know if he remembered it or if anyone believed him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"960\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/000050_06_5th_DIMENSION_1-1adj-LR.jpg?resize=960%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"The 5th Dimension perform at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45802\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The 5th Dimension perform at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmagazine.com\/arts-entertainment\/2021\/06\/why-it-took-50-years-for-the-harlem-cultural-festival-to-get-its-cinematic-due\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Why It Took 50 Years for the Harlem Cultural Festival to Get Its Cinematic Due (D Magazine)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Summer of Soul<\/em> was edited by Joshua L. Pearson, the award-winning editor known for his work on the Academy Award-nominated <em>What Happened, Miss Simone?<\/em>, as well as <em>Under African Skies: Paul Simon\u2019s Graceland Journey<\/em>, \u201c<em>Keith Richards: Under The Influence<\/em>, and <em>Whitey: The United States of America v. James J. Bulger<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOf course it\u2019s a shame that this footage sat in a box in a basement for 50 years, but after percolating all this time, it\u2019s like finding treasure now,\u201d Pearson commented in an interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motionpictures.org\/2021\/07\/summer-of-soul-editor-celebrates-the-nearly-forgotten-black-woodstock\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hugh Hart<\/a> for the Motion Picture Association\u2019s <em>The Credits<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cLast summer was so horrendous, with George Floyd and the pandemic, somewhat parallel to 1968, which was an especially hard year for Black people with the killing of Martin Luther King,\u201d he continued. \u201cSo 1969 was a summer of venting and release and I think this summer is going to be like that too. You feel good after you watch our movie.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"960\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/058_04_BB_KING_1-1adj-LR.jpg?resize=960%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"B.B. King performing at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45803\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">B.B. King performing at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While sometimes referred to as \u201cBlack Woodstock,\u201d the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival as it would be depicted in <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> was never going to be the immersive experience provided by the 1970 <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/cTsq3eacP3E\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>Woodstock<\/em><\/a> documentary directed by Michael Wadleigh. \u201cThe Woodstock film is very immersive because they had 15 famous cameramen wandering around with sixteen-millimeter cameras getting all this great footage making you feel like you were right there in the crowd,\u201d Pearson explained to Hart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Television veteran Hal Tulchin was brought on to shoot all six concerts at the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival, signing a sponsorship deal with Maxwell House Coffee to finance the production. But there wasn\u2019t enough money for film stock, and the production \u201conly had four cameras on stage, with just one of them pointing out at the audience,\u201d Pearson recounted, adding:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSince we couldn\u2019t do the immersive thing, <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> is more about the audience having the privilege of looking at this incredible artifact. The musicians\u2019 sets were really well shot so you experience the excitement of their performances but at the same, it\u2019s like you\u2019re in a museum looking at a beautiful painting or piece of bronze jewelry from [ancient] Greece. And part of that feeling comes from the way we frame the movie, starting off with tape hiss as Ahmir asks someone who was there: \u2018What do you remember about this concert?\u2019 We\u2019re setting it up to feel like \u2018Oh my god I\u2019m watching something precious that hasn\u2019t been seen in 50 years.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SUMMER OF SOUL | Mongo Santamar\u00eda &amp; Style in Harlem Clip\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/B00lqSsiv14?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motionpictures.org\/2021\/07\/summer-of-soul-editor-celebrates-the-nearly-forgotten-black-woodstock\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cSummer of Soul\u201d Editor on Piecing Together the Nearly Forgotten Black Woodstock (The Credits)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tulchin had wanted to call the project \u201cBlack Woodstock\u201d and, initially, Thompson planned to use the title for his film as well. \u201cThe title was my last move,\u201d Thompson said to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vanityfair.com\/style\/2021\/06\/questlove-on-his-new-documentary-summer-of-soul\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Lisa Robinson<\/a> in an interview for <em>Vanity Fair<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI knew in my heart it would be a disservice to call it \u2018Black Woodstock.\u2019 In Hal\u2019s last minute Hail Mary pass, when he attempted to find somebody to make this film, he figured if he could conceptualize it under the Woodstock thing, people would be interested. But still, nobody was. So this film basically wound up sitting in his basement for 50 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt was a working title, and for a little bit I thought of the irony of Black people had constantly been talking about cultural appropriation, so it would be interesting if the tables turned a little bit and we appropriated something established with white people. But then towards the end, deep into the pandemic, around March 2020, I thought I would do it a major disservice if I didn\u2019t let this film stand alone. The very last thing I did was change the title and I also said I wanted a knowing wink \u2014 based on Gil Scott Heron\u2019s lyric \u2014 \u2018When the revolution couldn\u2019t be televised.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"973\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/047_SOS_00137_W1.0-LR.jpg?resize=973%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Gladys Knight &amp; the Pips perform at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45801\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gladys Knight &amp; the Pips perform at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.vanityfair.com\/style\/2021\/06\/questlove-on-his-new-documentary-summer-of-soul\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Questlove Talks Directing, Insecurity, and the Miraculous Found Footage That Led to His New Documentary, Summer of Soul (Vanity Fair)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cFrom the funky, opening groove of the film\u2019s first song, Stevie Wonder\u2019s slinky jam on the Isley\u2019s Brothers\u2019 \u201cIt\u2019s Your Thing,\u201d it is obvious the new documentary <em>Summer of Soul (&#8230;or When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)<\/em> will be packed with little-seen, landmark live performances,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2021\/07\/01\/1010306918\/summer-of-soul-questlove-movie-review-harlem-cultural-festival\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Eric Deggans<\/a> observes in his review for <em>NPR<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cBut watch a little longer, as Wonder sits behind a drumkit to whip off a crackling drum solo. As he works the kit, clips of news reports and pundits surface talking about the crucial political and social issues facing Black people in 1969. And you realize you\u2019re seeing something more.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That something more invokes the mood of a community that has come together to celebrate its very existence in the face of violence, systemic discrimination and cultural whitewashing and erasure. \u201cBy 1969, the country had already endured the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr,\u201d Deggans points out, going on to note that at one point the film even suggests that one reason city officials backed the festival was to avoid potential rioting on the anniversary of King\u2019s assassination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"950\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/097_SOS_00129-1-LR.jpg?resize=950%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"The Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45807\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2021\/07\/01\/1010306918\/summer-of-soul-questlove-movie-review-harlem-cultural-festival\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u2018Summer Of Soul\u2019 Celebrates A 1969 Black Cultural Festival Eclipsed By Woodstock (NPR)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thompson was immediately drawn to the footage of Wonder playing the drums when he first saw it, intuitively understanding that it made the perfect opening number, he explained in an interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/interview\/questlove-summer-of-soul-black-music-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Clover Hope<\/a> for <em>Pitchfork<\/em>. \u201cWhen I got to the Stevie Wonder drum solo, I knew that was the gob-smacking cold-open shocker of all shockers,\u201d he said. \u201cPeople have never seen Stevie Wonder in a sort of percussion context. So I figured that\u2019s my little wink to anyone coming in with folded arms like, OK, what\u2019s the Roots drummer going to do with this film? Of course, he\u2019s going to do a drum solo.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The moment Wonder takes the stage happened to coincide with the historic Apollo Moon Landing, bringing the country\u2019s sharp cultural divide to the forefront, as Thompson highlights in the film:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen Stevie comes on stage, that\u2019s when Apollo lands on the moon. When he lightly mentioned it, you hear boos, and that was curious to me. Of course, growing up, I listened to Gil Scott and Curtis Mayfield. I\u2019ve heard snide remarks about the moon landing in soul songs, but I didn\u2019t realize the disdain was that strong. Once we heard boos, it\u2019s like, whoa, let\u2019s investigate. Unbeknownst to us, CBS Evening News\u2019 Walter Cronkite happened to send a man-on-the-street [reporter]. It was done in a snarky way, like, \u2018While the world stands by to watch history, they\u2019re in the park\u2026\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"978\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/stevie-wonder-performs.jpg?resize=978%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Stevie Wonder performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45796\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Stevie Wonder performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/pitchfork.com\/features\/interview\/questlove-summer-of-soul-black-music-history\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Questlove on Restoring Black Music History and Making One of the Year\u2019s Best Films (Pitchfork)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Producers Robert Fyvolent and David Dinerstein compiled an ideal list of directors for <em>Summer of Soul<\/em>, with Thompson at the very top, but The Roots co-founder wasn\u2019t sure at first that he was the best person for the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019d followed Ahmir\u2019s career for the last 25 years, and knew he was an extraordinary storyteller with his finger on the cultural pulse. Not only did he have an encyclopedic knowledge of film, his voice in particular delivers an immersive quality that puts viewers in the moment of this historical event,\u201d Fyvolent comments in the film\u2019s production notes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt was crucial to find a director who understood music and its history. Someone who could put the footage and its relevance in context. Ahmir embodied all of those things,\u201d Dinerstein adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In an interview with <em>Variety<\/em> crafts editor <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2021\/film\/news\/summer-of-soul-questlove-harlem-cultural-festival-1234892950\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jazz Tangcay<\/a>, Thompson explained his initial hesitation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen it was presented to me, one I didn\u2019t believe it in the beginning. Because my ego wouldn\u2019t even let me fathom that you know the all-knowing music snob Questlove didn\u2019t know about something as mammoth as this festival happening,\u201d he laughs. \u201cAnd then it went from that to, \u2018Wait a minute, why am I chosen one to tell this story?\u2019 This is more than just entertainment; this is history. Why are you trusting a first-time driver behind the wheel?\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thompson \u201ctried hard\u201d to get out of it, he recalled:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI was like, \u2018You need someone real like an Ava DuVernay or Spike Lee to take this because this is too much important in history for you to rely on a novice. I\u2019m the only person in history that was given a winning lottery ticket, and was like, \u2018Give it to them give it to them.\u2019 But [the producers] told me that this was my destiny and I had to accept this mission. It was like <em>Mission Impossible<\/em>, and I had to deal with it. And I\u2019m very glad I did so.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Summer-of-Soul-003.jpg?ssl=1\" alt=\"Tony Lawrence hosts the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45846\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Tony Lawrence hosts the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2021\/film\/news\/summer-of-soul-questlove-harlem-cultural-festival-1234892950\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">How Questlove\u2019s \u2018Summer of Soul\u2019 Tracked Down Rare Footage of the Landmark Harlem Cultural Festival (Variety)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In preparation for making <em>Summer of Soul<\/em>, Thompson had the restored footage transferred to DVD to watch on a loop at home. He described his process for reviewing the footage to Haizlip:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI basically made that my visual aquarium for those five months. Instead of sitting here with my pad and pen and just watching everything, I wanted it to naturally hit me. So, all the TVs in my house, in my office at NBC, my laptop \u2014 it was like a screensaver. The concert just constantly played for 24 hours. I kept notepads next to each monitor in my house.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Once Thompson determined that Stevie Wonder\u2019s performance would open the film, many of the other elements began falling into place. \u201cThis is also how I plan shows,\u201d he said. \u201cI feel as though most people remember the first ten minutes and the last ten minutes of any show, but it\u2019s almost like, what\u2019s in between doesn\u2019t matter. Yes, in this case it does matter, but for me, it was like, when people first see this, what do they see and what do you leave them with?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group\"><div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\">\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-luminous-vivid-amber-color has-css-opacity has-luminous-vivid-amber-background-color has-background is-style-default\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-luminous-vivid-amber-background-color has-background\" id=\"navigating-the-metaverse\"><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/?s=metaverse&amp;v=content\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/?s=Motion%20Picture%20\/%20Film%20and%20Documentary&amp;v=content\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">NOT WHODUNNIT, BUT HOW-DUNNIT \u2014 DIGGING INTO DOCUMENTARIES:<\/a><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading has-black-color has-text-color has-medium-font-size\" id=\"the-metaverse-may-be-a-wild-frontier-but-here-at-nab-amplify-we-ve-got-you-covered-hand-selected-from-our-archives-here-are-some-of-the-essential-insights-you-ll-need-to-expand-your-knowledge-base-and-confidently-explore-the-new-horizons-ahead\"><em><em>Documentary filmmakers are unleashing cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence and virtual reality to bring their projects to life. Gain insights into the making of these groundbreaking projects with these articles extracted from the <\/em><\/em>NAB Amplify<em><em> archives:<\/em><\/em><\/h6>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list has-medium-font-size\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/articles\/crossing-the-line-how-the-roadrunner-documentary-created-an-ethics-firestorm\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Crossing the Line: How the \u201cRoadrunner\u201d Documentary Created an Ethics Firestorm<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/articles\/ill-be-your-mirror-reflection-and-refraction-in-the-velvet-underground\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">I\u2019ll Be Your Mirror: Reflection and Refraction in \u201cThe Velvet Underground\u201d<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/articles\/create-navalny-when-your-documentary-becomes-a-spy-thriller\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cNavalny:\u201d When Your Documentary Ends Up As a Spy Thriller<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/articles\/create-under-the-volcano-love-and-lava-in-sara-dosas-documentary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Under the Volcano(es): How Sara Dosa Found a \u201cFire of Love\u201d<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/amplify.nabshow.com\/articles\/create-it-was-a-long-and-winding-road\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">It WAS a Long and Winding Road: Producing Peter Jackson\u2019s Epic Documentary \u201cThe Beatles: Get Back\u201d<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-luminous-vivid-amber-color has-css-opacity has-luminous-vivid-amber-background-color has-background\"\/>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:20px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The centerpiece of <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> is the incredibly moving footage of Mahalia Jackson and Mavis Staples as they perform \u201cTake My Hand, Precious Lord,\u201d an often-requested favorite of King\u2019s, who had been assassinated just one year earlier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI don\u2019t remember how long this performance lasts,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/06\/24\/movies\/summer-of-soul-review.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Morris<\/a> writes in his <em>New York Times<\/em> review. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t really even have an ending, per se. It just simply concludes, with each woman heading back to Reverend Jackson, into the band. But when it\u2019s over you don\u2019t know what to do \u2014 well, besides never forget it. It\u2019s an extraordinary event not just of musical history. It\u2019s a mind-blowing moment of American history. And for five decades, the footage of it apparently just sat in a basement, waiting for someone like Thompson to give it its due.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"960\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/0038_01_MAVIS___MAHALIA_1-1adj-LR.jpg?resize=960%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Mavis Staples and Mahalia Jackson performing at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45799\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mavis Staples and Mahalia Jackson performing at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thompson initially envisioned this soulful gospel performance for the film\u2019s ending, he told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.documentary.org\/column\/summer-soul-conversation-questlove-about-black-joy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Melissa Haizlip<\/a> in an interview for <em>Documentary Magazine<\/em>. \u201cI gave permission for [producer] Joseph [Patel] and everyone to really speak their voice and let me know if I was trailing off into amateur-hour territory,\u201d he said. \u201cFor the ending \u2014 initially I thought well, obviously, Mahalia [Jackson] and Mavis Staples have to close this; that\u2019s the most magical moment of the thing. And then Joseph challenged me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The filmmakers ultimately decided to use Nina Simon\u2019s performance for the ending of the film, Thompson told Haizlip:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI felt it was more dangerous and edgy, and it spoke more of today to let Nina Simone have the last word, especially with \u2018Are You Ready, Black People?,\u2019 with her challenging people to immerse themselves. We live in a time where a lot of performative activism is trying to masquerade itself as actual activism, especially with social media. Once we shifted Mavis and Mahalia to the middle, it elevated the film even more, then of course, Nina\u2019s fiery performance was the hardest to break up because that entire 45 minutes was the most magical. I\u2019ve never seen a person just so sure of themselves in new territory. She\u2019s not singing jazzy love ballads like \u2018My Baby Just Cares for Me.\u2019 She\u2019s going into a new territory of activism. So, once you have those three, the story writes itself. And this is a story of change.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter\" data-effect=\"slide\"><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container\"><ul class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper\"><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Nina Simone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-45808\" data-id=\"45808\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/nina-simone-SOS.jpg?ssl=1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">Nina Simone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"960\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Nina Simone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-45798\" data-id=\"45798\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/012_03_NINA_1-1adj-LR.jpg?resize=960%2C720&#038;ssl=1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">Nina Simone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide\"><figure><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"1080\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Nina Simone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-45849\" data-id=\"45849\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/SummerofSoul-NS.jpg?resize=1080%2C720&#038;ssl=1\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption\">Nina Simone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white\" role=\"button\"><\/a><a aria-label=\"Pause Slideshow\" class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause\" role=\"button\"><\/a><div class=\"wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the original footage did undergo a restoration process, it was important to Thompson that the visual and sonic artifacts of the era be retained, he said to Haizlip:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cVisually and sonically I wanted it to be as true to 1969 as we could get it. The one thing that I would love to really take credit for was the sonic miracle that was the mix. Hal Tulchin\u2019s widow let us go through his basement archives, where a lot of our questions were answered because he kept all the paperwork, he kept the backline, he kept what was rented, he kept the blueprint of building the stage to the soundboard. I was amazed that it was only 12 microphones; when you watch the movie the way that I did, you have to watch with a different set of ears and eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The mixes and the reels were handed off to one of Thompson\u2019s favorite music engineers, <a href=\"https:\/\/jimmydouglass.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jimmy Douglass<\/a>. \u201cHe started with Barry White when he was 17 years old and he\u2019s gone through a whole ring,\u201d Thompson recalled. \u201cI got familiar with him once Timbaland made him his engineer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Widely known as \u201cThe Senator,\u201d Douglass also served as music mixer on the 2018 Aretha Franklin biopic, <em>Amazing Grace<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe really gave us a great mix,\u201d Thompson continued. \u201cWe did a 5.1 and we did a Dolby version. The way that B.B. King\u2019s performance comes off in the movie theater; it\u2019s literally like you\u2019re sitting on stage listening to how clear and crisp it is with very minimum amplification. It\u2019s so weird that that\u2019s the one thing that I\u2019m taking away from this movie that I might apply to my real life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.documentary.org\/column\/summer-soul-conversation-questlove-about-black-joy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u2018Summer of Soul\u2019: A Conversation with Questlove about Black Joy (Documentary Magazine)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SUMMER OF SOUL | Soul Searching | Featurette\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bSDkky0YREk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Restoring the footage was a delicate process, Thompson told <em>The Hollywood Reporter<\/em>\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/news\/summer-on-soul-questlove-on-his-documentary-homage-to-black-woodstock\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rebecca Keegan<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt took about four months to clean, to make sure it didn\u2019t crumble inside of modern machines \u2014 47 reels. There wasn\u2019t a budget for lights. They only had one sponsor, and that was Maxwell House. So they had to make sure that the stage faced west so that they could take advantage of the sun. It was recorded with barely 60 microphones for full-blown orchestras. We had one sound-glitch problem: Freddie Stone\u2019s guitar amp. What you\u2019re listening to is very close to what it was in 1969.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The COVID pandemic arrived just as Thompson and his team completed all the arrangements for filming interviews, he told Keegan. \u201cThe first week of March, we had this elaborate lineup set. From around March 13 till mid-April, I was just sulking and under the sheets, thinking \u2018this movie\u2019s going to go to hell,\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the pandemic lockdown actually helped Thompson rethink his approach to the film. \u201cIt\u2019s so weird, this film actually became better,\u201d he said to Keegan:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt started out as, \u2018OK, let me just curate the best performances I can.\u2019 Suddenly, COVID forced me to also tell the story of the concert. Mainly because the story was happening again in real time. The circumstances that caused the concert to happen back in 1969 were starting to happen in 2020. One thing I always wanted to uncover is, a lot of people are often amused at how we catch the spirit, so to speak, in terms of our excitement in music, like when you see James Brown screaming or you see Jimi Hendrix do a mammoth guitar solo. As I was watching this, I realized that there was something deeper under the surface. I was like, \u2018OK, we\u2019ve got to start finding people [who were in the audience].\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/SoS-5th-Dimension.jpg?ssl=1\" alt=\"The 5th Dimension perform at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45847\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The 5th Dimension perform at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/news\/summer-on-soul-questlove-on-his-documentary-homage-to-black-woodstock\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u2018Summer of Soul\u2019: Questlove on His Documentary Homage to \u201cBlack Woodstock\u201d (The Hollywood Reporter)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Making <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> was Thompson\u2019s \u201cchance to correct history,\u201d he said in an interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebony.com\/entertainment\/the-revolution-was-not-televised-questloves-summer-of-soul-unearths-the-black-woodstock-that-was-kept-hidden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Brandon Pope<\/a> for <em>Ebony<\/em>. \u201cIt\u2019s a story that, for so long, hasn\u2019t been shared.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Tulchin filmed a once-in-a-generation party in preparation for a concert film that never happened, and the footage went largely unseen until it was put in storage. Fifty years later, the unprecedented footage was finally unearthed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI myself didn\u2019t even know the story,\u201d Thompson admitted to Pope. \u201cIf I were a betting man, I would have bet all my publishing that this never happened.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It was about three months before Thompson said \u201clet\u2019s make a movie,\u201d and began to assemble a team to help him craft the narrative. \u201cI just told my production team to be really transparent. Do not let me walk out in the world with a wine stain on my suit without telling me.\u201d said Thompson. \u201cCredit to my producer, my editors and everyone involved in the process of helping me make it this because I wanted to make an effective educational piece.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"SUMMER OF SOUL | Harlem: Then &amp; Now | Featurette\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/IOWl3MIhywc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ebony.com\/entertainment\/the-revolution-was-not-televised-questloves-summer-of-soul-unearths-the-black-woodstock-that-was-kept-hidden\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Revolution Was Not Televised: Questlove\u2019s \u2018Summer Of Soul\u2019 Unearths the Black Woodstock That Was Kept Hidden (Ebony)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The cultural significance of <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> was immediately apparent to Thompson, he told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/summer-of-soul-questlove-interview-1175483\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jonathan Bernstein<\/a> in an interview for <em>Rolling Stone<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis was supposed to come out 50 years ago, and I was supposed to see this movie as a four-year-old,\u201d he stressed. \u201cWhen <em>Woodstock<\/em> came out, the movie made household names out of every artist who appeared in the film. The legend of that concert wound up subsequently defining a generation\u2026. And so, as a result, when you think of the late Sixties, you think of hippies, mud, free love, Hendrix, all of those things. This could\u2019ve been such an adrenaline boost to black music culture, and it wasn\u2019t allowed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"437\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Sos-Crowd.jpg?resize=437%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Hundreds of thousands of people attended the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45809\" style=\"width:307px;height:505px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Hundreds of thousands of people attended the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As an example of what could have been, Thompson points to Prince\u2019s memoir, \u201cThe Beautiful Ones,\u201d which contains a detailed recollection of seeing <em>Woodstock<\/em> in theaters with his father in 1970. The experience proved to be a formative one for the artist, and Thompson wondered if <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> could have had a similar effect on Prince and other artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHis dad could have took him to see this film,\u201d he said to Bernstein. \u201cWho knows what could have happened?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/music\/music-features\/summer-of-soul-questlove-interview-1175483\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">A Festival Dream Deferred No More: Inside Questlove\u2019s \u2018Summer of Soul\u2019 (Rolling Stone)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thompson premiered <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> in late spring at Marcus Garvey Park, the same location where the Harlem Cultural Festival was held in 1969. The date was Saturday, June 19 \u2014 Juneteenth, the new federal holiday commemorating the emancipation of African-American slaves. During the screening, the musician-turned-filmmaker found himself surprised by some of the elements that grabbed the audience\u2019s attention. \u201cThey were responding to stuff that I hadn\u2019t considered,\u201d he told <a href=\"https:\/\/theundefeated.com\/features\/the-harlem-cultural-festival-footage-is-getting-wider-recognition-in-the-new-summer-of-soul-documentary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Farrell Evans<\/a> in an interview for <em>The Undefeated<\/em>. \u201cUsually you show the film first with test audiences, but we decided to screen it here in Harlem.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/theundefeated.com\/features\/the-harlem-cultural-festival-footage-is-getting-wider-recognition-in-the-new-summer-of-soul-documentary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">The Harlem Cultural Festival footage is getting wider recognition in the new \u2018Summer of Soul\u2019 documentary (The Undefeated)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Editor Joshua L. Pearson was also at the event, he recounted in an interview with <em>The Credits<\/em>. \u201cIt was kind of mind-blowing,\u201d he told <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motionpictures.org\/2021\/07\/summer-of-soul-editor-celebrates-the-nearly-forgotten-black-woodstock\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Hugh Hart<\/a>, adding:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cEveryone clapped and cheered after every song. During the gospel section, people around me were testifying, holding their hands up in the air. And it was weird because they\u2019d built this backdrop for the stage behind the screen that was just like the original backdrop made of multicolored blocks that you see in the film. I felt like I\u2019d fallen into some kind of wormhole, with the live event from 1969 being transmitted through time in the same spot. Trippy is the only word I can think of to describe it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" height=\"720\" width=\"973\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/064_SOS_00231-1-LR.jpg?resize=973%2C720&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Hugh Masekela performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures\" class=\"wp-image-45805\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Hugh Masekela performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">READ MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motionpictures.org\/2021\/07\/summer-of-soul-editor-celebrates-the-nearly-forgotten-black-woodstock\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">\u201cSummer of Soul\u201d Editor on Piecing Together the Nearly Forgotten Black Woodstock (The Credits)<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Want more? Listen to Thompson discuss <em>Summer of Soul<\/em> in an interview with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2021\/07\/01\/1012294452\/questloves-summer-of-soul-tells-the-story-of-6-concerts-in-harlem-in-1969\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Audie Cornish<\/a> for <em>NPR<\/em> in the audio player below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/player\/embed\/1012294452\/1012294453\" width=\"100%\" height=\"290\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" title=\"NPR embedded audio player\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can also watch Thompson in an interview with <em>CBS Sunday Morning<\/em> contributor Hua Hsu:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&quot;Summer of Soul&quot;: Rescuing a historic Harlem music festival\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ZgtyuUyJjW4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":45797,"menu_order":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_breakdance_hide_in_design_set":false,"_breakdance_tags":""},"categories":[248],"class_list":["post-45811","articles","type-articles","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-amplify"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d | Jennifer Wolfe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d | Jennifer Wolfe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Jennifer Wolfe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-09-15T00:28:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@WordsWolfe\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"18 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/\",\"name\":\"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d | Jennifer Wolfe\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-07-13T09:04:38+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-09-15T00:28:50+00:00\",\"description\":\"Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/07\\\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630,\"caption\":\"Sly Stone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\\\/Searchlight Pictures\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/articles\\\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/\",\"name\":\"Jennifer Wolfe\",\"description\":\"Los Angeles-based content strategist &amp; technology storyteller\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5c8455e971aaad480c042cc47e8a6fbc\"},\"alternateName\":\"JWolfePR\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5c8455e971aaad480c042cc47e8a6fbc\",\"name\":\"Jennifer Wolfe\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1\",\"width\":600,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"Jennifer Wolfe\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/i0.wp.com\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1\"},\"description\":\"A Los Angeles-based content producer and strategist with 15+ years of experience in Media &amp; Entertainment, I bring a broad-scope knowledge of M&amp;E business and technologies spanning visual storytelling, creative post production, and digital content creation and delivery. Fluent across digital publishing platforms, including development and back-end management, I am highly skilled at translating technical workflows into narratives that showcase product features and capabilities.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/jwolfepr.com\\\/dev\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/jwolfepr\\\/\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d | Jennifer Wolfe","description":"Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d | Jennifer Wolfe","og_description":"Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.","og_url":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/","og_site_name":"Jennifer Wolfe","article_modified_time":"2024-09-15T00:28:50+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":630,"url":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@WordsWolfe","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"18 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/","url":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/","name":"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d | Jennifer Wolfe","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1","datePublished":"2021-07-13T09:04:38+00:00","dateModified":"2024-09-15T00:28:50+00:00","description":"Acclaimed filmmaking debut from musician and music historian Ahmir \u201cQuestlove\u201d Thompson restores forgotten Black American history.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/0SUMMER_OF_SOUL_-_Sly_Stone._Courtesy_of_Mass_Distraction_Media_1-LR-1200x630-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C630&ssl=1","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"Sly Stone performs at the Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969, featured in the documentary \u201cSummer Of Soul (Or, When The Revolution Could Not Be Televised).\u201d Cr: Mass Distraction Media\/Searchlight Pictures"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/articles\/restored-and-reborn-summer-of-soul-or-when-the-revolution-could-not-be-televised\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Restored and Reborn: \u201cSummer of Soul (\u2026Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised)\u201d"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/#website","url":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/","name":"Jennifer Wolfe","description":"Los Angeles-based content strategist &amp; technology storyteller","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/#\/schema\/person\/5c8455e971aaad480c042cc47e8a6fbc"},"alternateName":"JWolfePR","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/#\/schema\/person\/5c8455e971aaad480c042cc47e8a6fbc","name":"Jennifer Wolfe","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1","url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1","contentUrl":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1","width":600,"height":600,"caption":"Jennifer Wolfe"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jwolfepr.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/jwolfepr-avatar-light-blue.png?fit=600%2C600&ssl=1"},"description":"A Los Angeles-based content producer and strategist with 15+ years of experience in Media &amp; Entertainment, I bring a broad-scope knowledge of M&amp;E business and technologies spanning visual storytelling, creative post production, and digital content creation and delivery. Fluent across digital publishing platforms, including development and back-end management, I am highly skilled at translating technical workflows into narratives that showcase product features and capabilities.","sameAs":["https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/jwolfepr\/"]}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles\/45811","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/articles"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/articles"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45811"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jwolfepr.com\/dev\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45811"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}