Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson makes his feature directorial debut withthe Sundance winner Summer of Soul (…or, When the Revolution Could Not be Televised) at Searchlight Pictures which puts the spotlight on the little-known Harlem Cultural Festival in 1969.
Summer of Soul, which opens July 2 in theaters and streams on Hulu, is part music film, 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 Marcus Garvey Park). The footage was never seen and 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 feature includes never-before-seen concert performances by Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly & the Family Stone, Gladys Knight & the Pips, Mahalia Jackson, B.B. King, The 5th Dimension and more.
Summer of Soul is the first official project under the recently announced Onyx Collective brand. Watch the trailer above.
