2016 marks 100 years since the beginning of the first Great Migration to Philadelphia, the mass movement that brought many African-American families to the Philadelphia area at the start of World War One.

Renowned commissioned media artists worked with Philadelphia community organizations to capture and interpret the stories of the organizations and the individuals that were affected by the events of the Great Migration.

Standing at the Scratch Line – Julie Dash
Traveling between Mother Emmanuel A.M.E in Charleston, SC to Mother Bethel A.M.E in Philadelphia, Dash creates a cinematic tone poem about returning to sacred spaces of departure and arrival. 

Eason - Kevin Jerome Everson
Everson explores modes of Black life in the North and the South, the death of James Walker Hood Eason, a leader of the Universal Negro Improvement Association, and the life of Malik Hudgins, a current UNIA member.

When We Came Up Here- Tina Morton
A digital tapestry combining audio recordings, with articles and advertisements offer a glimpse into the role the Philadelphia Tribune provided for newly arrived southern migrants.

Ancestral Correspondence: Looking Back at Our Future – Lonnie Graham
In collaboration with youth participants from the Wissahickon Boys and Girls Club, Graham presents the faces and stories of migration.  

For more information about the 2016 BlackStar Film Festival and Festival passes check out http://blackstarfest.org

THE GREAT MIGRATION: A CITY TRANSFORMED (1916-1930) IS BEEN SUPPORTED BY THE PEW CENTER FOR ARTS & HERITAGE.  

Additional support is provided by the Lincoln Financial Foundation, Hamilton Family Foundation, the Department of History of Art, Department of Africana Studies and Center for Africana Studies, University of Pennsylvania