Songs for Nina | feature documentary wip | teaser trailer
In 2009, 18 women traveled to Paris, France, to pay tribute to the one-of-a-kind singer, songwriter, and pianist Nina Simone (1933-2003), as part of the Sons D’Hiver Music Festival. This film documents this historic event, tracing the concert from the planning stages through rehearsals to its performance while introducing and following the artists who are executing the show. The result is a story about the ways contemporary black women pursue their creative work and draw inspiration from an important foremother like Nina Simone. SONGS FOR NINA shows the continuities between these different generations of black women artists and also show the ways things have changed for black women in the 21st century, in part because of the trailblazing work done by activist artists like Nina Simone.
Producers: M. Asli Dukan, Maureen Mahon, LaRonda Davis
Director: M. Asli Dukan
Editor (trailer): Rie Ito