Acclaimed director Stanley Nelson shares latest documentary at USC

The world may not have known it, but back in the 1960s when director Stanley Nelson Jr. decided to devote his life to using film to chronicle social issues, new voices would be heard and untold stories shared.

Nelson’s first film, “Two Dollars and a Dream,” released in 1989, told the story of Madam CJ Walker, the daughter of slaves who, in 1901, founded a million-dollar company and became America’s first self-made female millionaire.

In the years since, he’s produced a passel of award-winning documentaries and movies covering the beginnings of the civil rights movement, the Black Panthers and the Jonestown tragedy, to name just a few. The films haven’t just been well-received by audiences – Nelson has received nearly every major award in broadcasting. He’s been lauded at Sundance Film Festival and is a MacArthur Foundation “Genius” Fellow.

Nelson’s latest film, “Tell Them We Are Rising,” explores the 170-year history of the nation’s 103 historically black colleges and universities. Columbia is home to two of those – Allen and Benedict – with several others around the state.

Nelson said his latest documentary is probably the most complicated story he’s told.

“There’s really no one takeaway,” he said. “For some, this will be a first look at the impact and relevance of HBCUs. For those who attended or who are attending an HBCU, firsthand accounts from those who went before them will shed light on the sacrifices that went into creating these institutions.”

At 10 a.m. Thursday, March 30, Nelson will present excerpts from “Tell Them We are Rising” at Allen University’s historic Chappelle Auditorium, 1530 Harden St. It is free and open to the public.

Then, at noon, Nelson will discuss his films with Laura Kissel, a University of South Carolina professor of film and media arts, in Lumpkin Auditorium in the Close-Hipp Building. It is free and open to the public.

As part of the Media & Civil Rights History Symposium through the School of Journalism and Mass Communications, Nelson will discuss and screen excerpts of three civil rights documentaries, including the triple-Emmy winner “Freedom Riders,” “The Black Press: Soldiers without Swords” and “Tell Them We are Rising.” The event will be 7-9 p.m. Friday, March 31 in the Booker T. Washington Auditorium, 1400 Wheat St. Registration for the symposium, which starts at 9 a.m. that morning and continues through Saturday, April 1, is $150 at the USC Marketplace online or $175 on-site.

This story was originally published March 29, 2017 at 10:30 AM with the headline "Acclaimed director Stanley Nelson shares latest documentary at USC."