A reckoning in Boston / Lost Nation Pictures presents ; directed, written & edited by James Rutenbeck ; produced by Carl Chandler, Kafi Dixon, James Rutenbeck ; produced in association with the Film Study Center at Harvard University.

Format:

Video

Contributor:

Rutenbeck, James, film director, screenwriter, editor of moving image work, film producer.

Chandler, Carl, film producer, on-screen participant.

Dixon, Kafi, film producer, on-screen participant.

Albright, Dan, director of photography.

Lost Nation Pictures, production company.

Harvard University. Film Study Center, production company.

Bullfrog Films, distributor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

African Americans--Education (Continuing education).

African Americans.

Motion picture authorship.

Social aspects.

Boston (Mass.)--Social relations--21st century.

Boston (Mass.).

Boston (Mass.)--Race relations--21st century.

Motion picture authorship--Social aspects.

Genre:

Documentary films.

Nonfiction films.

Feature films.

Video recordings.

Physical Description:

1 streaming video file (1 hr., 23 min.) : digital, sound, color

polychrome

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : Lost Nations Pictures, [2020]

Language Note:

Closed captioning available.

System Details:

System requirements: Firefox 4 and up; Safari 5.0 and up; Chrome version 21 and up; Internet Explorer 8 and up; Flash or HTML5 player.

Mode of access: World Wide Web.

video file

Summary:

Kafi Dixon and Carl Chandler enrolled in a rigorous night course in the humanities at a community center in their Boston neighborhood of Dorchester. Kafi, 44, sharp, witty and restless, dropped out of school at 15. She had her first baby a year later and two more soon after. Carl, 65, who lives on a small pension and disability payment in one of Boston's most dangerous neighborhoods, began the class with a keen interest in learning but little faith in educational institutions. White suburban filmmaker James Rutenbeck came to Dorchester to document the students' engagement with the Clemente Course in the Humanities. The Clemente Course is taught in 34 sites across the U.S.--to those who have experienced homelessness, transitioned out of incarceration or faced barriers to a college education. The Clemente mission is to foster critical thinking through deep engagement with history, literature, philosophy and art history. Clemente students, its proponents assert, become fuller and freer citizens. But over time James is forced to come to terms with a flawed film premise and his own complicity in racist structures. As he spends time with Carl and Kafi, he's awakened to the violence, racism and gentrification that threaten their very place in the city. Troubled by his failure to bring the film together, he spends more time listening than filming and enlists Kafi and Carl as collaborators/ producers with a share in the film revenues. Five years on, despite many obstacles, Kafi and Carl arrive at surprising new places in their lives, and following their lead, James does too.

Participant:

Featuring Kafi Dixon, Carl Chandler [and others].

Credits:

Cinematography: Dan Albright [and others].

Notes:

Title from title frames.

Distributed by Bullfrog Films.

Description based on online resource; title from title frames (Docuseek2, viewed December 02, 2021).

Publisher Number:

bf-reck Docuseek2

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.