North Star: Minnesota's Black Pioneers
Using a powerful storytelling style and previously unseen historical material, North Star uncovers the "hidden history" of African Americans who helped shape the North Star state of Minnesota. From fur trader George Bonga to the state's first black woman lawyer, Lena Smith, the documentary provides a whole new perspective on Minnesota's diverse and fascinating past.
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Upcoming Events
City Pages - Documentary Film Festival screening
Tuesday, November 8, 2005 at 2:30 p.m.
Lagoon Cinema
1320 Lagoon Ave.
Minneapolis, MN
(612) 825-6006
Producer Notes
Brendan Henehan, Executive Producer
Daniel Bergin, Producer
Koua Yang, Associate Producer
Notes below are from Daniel Bergin.
As a filmmaker and a storyteller, these are really compelling stories and interesting characters, so I was really drawn into breathing life into these otherwise 'distant characters.'
I hope there are great conversations in the living rooms and classrooms after they watch North Star. It celebrates our history but it's also about 'us' being African Americans but also Minnesotans.
Although the stories told are about African Americans in Minnesota, they have meaning across race. For longtime Minnesotans, the documentary enriches their sense of the statie in which they live. "This is not just African American history...it's Minnesota history."
The support for North Star reflects the power of community and of people of all generations, races and backgrounds coming together to share the histories of these unsung Minnesotans.
