Two days after the Grand Jury was awarded the Sundance Documentary Award, Summer Of Soul (… or if the Revolution couldn’t be televised) was picked up by Searchlight and Hulu.
The acquisition of Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson’s directorial debut is earmarked for worldwide rights, parent company Disney says in a deal put together by Disney General Entertainment’s BIPOC Creator Initiative, led by Tara Duncan, and brokered by Cinetic Media.
With appearances from Sly and the Family Stone, Nina Simone, Mahalia Jackson, the Staples Sisters, Stevie Wonder, Glady Knight and the Pips, Max Roach, Abby Lincoln and many others, the music-themed documentary became both theatrical and for the cinema Streaming set up on Hulu in America and internationally on Star and Star +.
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“Summer Of Soul” Director Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson on the Lost “Black Woodstock” & Cultural Erasure – Sundance Studio
A true time capsule of theirs and now Summer of Soul is jam-packed with newly unearthed footage of the almost forgotten but star-studded Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969. In that sense, the film is “an exhilarating and chastening experience, as I said on my review of my review on January 28, when it premiered at the semi-virtual Sundance Film Festival – where the film also won the Audience Award.
“It is a great honor for me to be able to achieve my dreams after all this time,” said Roots drummer and music historian Thompson today after the long smoldering deal was published. “It’s really an honor. Summer Of Soul is a passion project and it was incredibly rewarding to resonate with so many people on so many levels. I am very excited to start this new chapter with the Searchlight / Disney / Hulu team and look forward to sharing the important story behind the film with audiences worldwide. “
Disney managers are also pretty excited about the high-priced bidding war, sources tell me.
“It’s rare to find a movie that captures the breadth of the Black American experience and gets you to dance out loud, speak out, and sing out loud,” explained Duncan. “Ahmir has given us a brilliantly designed, almost forgotten gem from our history, and we are honored to bring Summer Of Soul closer to the audience.”
“Ahmir made an incredible and inspiring debut film that is both timeless and relevant,” said Searchlight Chairs Nancy Utley and Steve Gilula of the new look to politics and music in what was called Black Woodstock at the time . “We are very proud to make this cultural festival accessible to the broadest possible audience, both in the theater and at home.”
“Summer of Soul (or when the revolution couldn’t be televised) is both a joyful and insightful documentary directed by one of the most talented artists of its generation,” said Rebecca Campbell, chairman of International Operations & Direct-to -Consumer. Part of Disney Media Entertainment Distribution. “We are honored, Hulu, and our upcoming Star and Star + offers will be the exclusive streaming homes for this groundbreaking film around the world.”
Summer Of Soul is produced by Joseph Patel, Robert Fyvolent and David Dinerstein with RadicalMedia. Jen Isaacson, Jon Kamen, Dave Sirulnick, Jody Allen, Ruth Johnston, Rocky Collins, Jannat Gargi, Beth Hubbard, Davis Guggenheim, Laurene Powell Jobs, Jeffrey Lurie, Marie Therese Guirgis, David Barse, Ron Eisenberg, Sheila Johnson and Questlove themselves serve as EPs. Jonathan Silberberg and Nicole Stott are co-executive producers. The document is a production by Vulcan Productions in association with Concordia Studio, Play / Action Pictures, LarryBilly Productions, and is produced by Mass Distraction Media and RadicalMedia.
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