He was in his late forties, she, late twenties. The year was 1971, the place London – the filming of what would become a legendary discourse between James Baldwin and Nikki Giovanni on Ellis Haizlip’s landmark show, Soul!
This two-part episode,
entitled James Baldwin & Nikki Giovanni – In Conversation, was as compelling
in its directional discourse as it was in its cinematic direction – leading to
a conversational debate that provided insight into the other’s point of view
with close-ups of a thought-leader in the making, in a young Giovanni, and Baldwin’s
impassioned comments on surviving slavery to his analyses on black male rage, as
the camera becomes its own voice, magnifying gestures, facial expressions and
turning worn accessories into statement pieces, all adding depth to the discussion.
To view this conversation
and learn more about Ellis Haizlip and Soul!, visit the following:
