Skip to main content
Back to Show
Independent Lens

Birth of a Movement - D.W. Griffith: Son of the South - Clip

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary Birth of a Movement, we learn about the childhood of iconic silent filmmaker D.W. Griffith, director of Birth of a Nation, who was born 10 years after the end of the Civil War. He grew up in a South that was romanticized for him through folklore despite the fact that he grew up in poverty and was basically considered "white trash."

Support Provided By
Season
Matter of Mind: My ALS
Unlock with PBS Passport
54:42
Three people with ALS confront complex choices in this intimate exploration.
The Picture Taker
Unlock with PBS Passport
1:25:44
Meet Ernest Withers, iconic African American civil rights photographer—and FBI informant.
Children of Las Brisas
Unlock with PBS Passport
1:22:50
A Venezuelan youth orchestra tests the power of music amidst poverty and politics.
Hazing
Unlock with PBS Passport
1:43:28
Hazing reveals the tradition of underground rituals that are abusive and sometimes deadly.
Dolores
Unlock with PBS Passport
1:56:24
Meet the indomitable Dolores Huerta, who led the fight for racial and labor justice.
Independent Lens Season 14
Unlock with PBS Passport
54:08
The rich culinary tradition of soul food and its relevance to black cultural identity.
Active loading indicator