Fannie Lou Hamer Doc Chosen for American Film Showcase
WASHINGTON, D.C. - FEBRUARY 15, 2024 – The American Film Showcase, the premier American film diplomacy program of the U.S. State Department, has chosen the award-winning documentary, Fannie Lou Hamer’s America, as an official selection for its 2024 film showcase.
The American Film Showcase (AFS) brings award-winning contemporary American documentaries to audiences around the world, offering a view of American society and culture as seen by independent filmmakers.
The AFS recently announced its 2024 film slate which is made available to U.S. Embassies and Consulates around the world to host film screenings for local audiences.
“AFS screenings offer audiences a nuanced view of American life and create space for cross-cultural dialogue,” said Rachel Gandin Mark, AFS Program Director. “We are incredibly proud of this collection of films and are excited to share these stories with new audiences around the world.”
Upcoming screenings of Fannie Lou Hamer’s America are planned in China, Vietnam, and Honduras.
Other documentary films chosen for the showcase include productions by veteran filmmakers Ron Howard, Tom Hanks and Nelson George and Amy Poehler.
Fannie Lou Hamer’s America Executive Producers Chris Hastings (l) and Selena Lauterer (r).
Fannie Lou Hamer's America explores and celebrates the lesser-known life of a Mississippi sharecropper-turned-human-rights-activist and one of the Civil Rights Movement’s greatest leaders. Through the layering of audio recordings and archival video footage of her powerful speeches, soul-stirring songs and impassioned pleas for equal rights, Fannie Lou Hamer tells her extraordinary story in her own words from her entry into activism in 1962 to her death in 1977.
The film premiered on PBS on February 22, 2022, and launched the landmark 10th season of America ReFramed on WORLD Channel on February 24. The film won the 2022 International Documentary Award (IDA) for Best TV Feature Documentary Or Mini-Series and the 2023 NAMIC Vision Award for Best Documentary.
“The stories explored in this year’s collection of 46 films reflect the diversity of the American experience,” said Ben Chance, the AFS Curation and Distribution Manager. “Spanning from the last native reserve in Alaska to Africatown, Alabama, the AFS slate features portraits of notable Americans such as Arthur Ashe, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Sally Schmidt. The AFS slate also features global stories that highlight the work of the World Central Kitchen and NASA Opportunity Rover’s 15-year mission on the surface of Mars, and much more.”
Dozens of AFS Envoys gathered at the September 2022 AFS Orientation at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. (Photo courtesy of AFS and Muna Shikaki)
Fannie Lou Hamer’s America was directed by Joy Elaine Davenport and produced by Hamer’s niece, Monica Land. Fannie Lou Hamer historians and authors Drs. Davis Houck and Maegan Parker Brooks were lead researchers and Land, Chris Hastings of GBH – America ReFramed, and Selena Lauterer of Artemis Independent were executive producers.
"What an honor it is to have our film included in the American Film Showcase,” Lauterer said. “It’s truly testament to the universal appeal and resonance of Mrs. Hamer’s message. Thank you to the U.S. State Department. We’re so excited audiences around the world have a chance to watch the documentary and further the spirit of speaking truth to power."
A Fannie Lou Hamer historian, as director, Davenport represents the film as an AFS Envoy.
“Fannie Lou Hamer’s life tells the full story of America in all of its idealism, tragedy, and unmet potential,” Davenport said. “Despite the violence and exploitation that she endured as a Black woman, a sharecropper, a mother, and a freedom fighter, her voice never wavered in its call for America to live up to its dream: equal opportunity and justice for all.”
Since 2012, AFS has produced over 4,000 screenings in 130 countries, reaching more than half a million people. U.S Embassies invite American filmmakers to lead Q&A discussions with local audiences at these overseas screenings of their films.
AFS offers the best of current American documentaries to U.S. Embassies and Consulates thanks to its partnership with American distributors, including Amazon, Netflix, PBS, The Walt Disney Company, and Warner Bros. Discovery, as well as independent American filmmakers and distributors.
About American Film Showcase: AFS is the United States’ flagship international film and TV public diplomacy program. AFS offers global audiences’ insight into American society through film and TV content; supports international filmmakers through cultural exchanges and mentorships; and builds cross-cultural networks of creative professionals.
AFS is an initiative of the U.S. Department of State and is implemented and produced by the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts.