*“Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise” won the AFI Docs audience award for best feature, reports Variety.
Directed by Rita Coburn Whack and Bob Hercules, the documentary traces the life of Angelou, told in her own words. “In chronicling Angelou’s life from her youth in the Depression-era South through her rise to international prominence, the film is a vital document about the importance of grace, dignity and the quest for the peace,” reads the film’s synopsis.
Watch the trailer below:
The five-day festival, which concluded on Sunday night in Washington D.C., featured 93 films from 30 countries.
AFI sat down with “Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise” filmmakers Rita Coburn Whack and Bob Hercules ahead of their film’s AFI DOCS premiere. Read excerpts from the Q&A below:
What inspired you to tell the story of Maya Angelou?
RW: “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings” was one of the first books I read with a black woman on the back cover. Later, I interviewed Maya Angelou as a host of a public radio program. Subsequently, I became her producer for Oprah Radio. By then, I had built a career in both radio and television and had done several documentaries. When I read all of her works to date in the 1990s in preparation for our radio interview, then later spent time working with her on Oprah Radio Show from 2006 to 2010, I knew I was listening to the history of our larger culture. I approached her about filming a documentary. Bob Hercules and I had a similar idea, having never heard of a documentary on Maya Angelou’s life, and a mutual friend introduced us.
BH: I was first drawn to Maya Angelou when I read her book “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” in college. Because of the poetry of that book and its specificity, it was an amazing window into the life of a Southern black girl — quite a revelation to a (fairly) privileged white, somewhat naïve kid at the time. Later, I watched her read her thrilling poem “On the Pulse of Morning” at President Clinton’s inauguration and I was filled with pride. When I discovered that no one had ever made a film about her, I was shocked.
Talk about your relationship with Maya Angelou while working on the film.
RW: Dr. Angelou was alive when we began filming and suggested many of the subjects, including Alice Windom, her roommate in Ghana. We wanted people that knew her in a way that would capture her humanity: her son, close friends, people who would show her as a mother, a woman, a wife — areas about which the public would not be as knowledgeable.
BH: It was a great honor to work with Dr. Angelou on this film. She was always very courteous and respectful but not a person to suffer fools. During the interviews, she had an amazing ability to go back to the time period she was describing and almost relive those moments, sometimes painfully so. My only regret is that she will never be able to see the film.
What was an obstacle you faced behind the scenes?
RW: Funding was a challenge and continues to be so as we do outreach and tour the film. We have some wonderful private donors and foundations, but still lack all we need to get this film out to audiences that are less likely to view a documentary on public television. I feel like I did as a child, trying to find work on my community — only this time I am also trying to find people to catch and spread the vision of this work to larger communities.
BH: Besides the fundraising issues, the biggest obstacle was the sheer scope of the story and how to squeeze it into two hours. Our strategy was to tell some significant stories in depth that are emblematic of her entire life and pass over other parts of her life. We didn’t want to make a “list” film, but rather cover some stories at greater length and depth.
What do you want audiences to take away from the film?
RW: Ultimately, I want them to be changed; to stop their own racist, sexist and abusive tendencies, which we all have; to be fairer and more inspired people. Filmmakers are allowed and encouraged to believe that dreams come true or we would not make films.
BH: I would like audiences to want to learn, in greater detail, what motivated Dr. Angelou to take the various paths she did and also to understand the context of the times she lived, since nothing happens in a vacuum. Finally, I hope the film can serve as a source of inspiration for people. By seeing how Dr. Angelou overcame the enormous challenges of racism, sexism and sexual abuse with grace and dignity, perhaps others can also overcome their own challenges.
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