Local residents have another change to see Andover movie producer Laura Bernieri's much-talked about film, "Delta Rising," a blues-music documentary.
It is being shown next Thursday, July 16 at the Tsang Theatre at Phillips Academy and Bernieri is thrilled for another chance to show local viewers the roots of that classic Delta blues sound.
This blues music documentary was screemed in Andover late last year at Glory Restaurant. A screening in Arlington was also held and well-attended. Accolades came in from smaller film festivals in Newport and the Bahamas. But the big news came from Beverly Hills as Bernieri won a producer of the year award for her documentary on the blues at the Beverly Hills Film Festival. She's a longtime Andover resident who she lives on the campus of Phillips Academy and is married to Lou Bernieri, an English professor.
Now, she's gearing up for the New Hampshire Film Festival to be held in October.
Bernieri's film explores the origins and rich history of the blues in Clarksdale, Miss., the center of the Mississippi Delta and its port of entry, Memphis, Tenn.
"It was just so much fun to make," Bernieri said of her film, a musical journey through the Delta Blues with some of the best musicians around.
Hollywood actor and amateur historian Morgan Freeman narrates the 59-minute film while James Montgomery is among the several musicians featured.
Like any good documentary, this one hopes viewers come away with a new understanding and appreciation of the topic.
"I hope it helps you understand the blues," Bernieri said. "There's so much to learn with the arrival of West Africans to their jobs in the cotton fields...singing while you work is at the root of this style of music."
She said the people living in that part of the country especially caught her attention.
"I found them to be magical, wonderful people," she said. "It's a beautiful landscape there from Memphis to Clarksdale...and I hope it's the strength of its people that viewers will learn about."
See www.tincanfilms.com to learn more about "Delta Rising."
See the movie
Delta Rising, blues music documentary
Producer is Laura Bernieri of Andover
Thursday, July 16
Tsang Theatre, Phillips Academy
5:45 p.m. doors open; movie at 6 p.m.
FREE admission
Q&A with Bernieri follows
Hear the music live
Musician James Montgomery joins Phillips professor Doug Bell for a live show after the movie.
Palmer's Restaurant, Elm Street, Andover
9 p.m. to midnight
