Director Brittany Shyne’s documentary “Seeds” poignantly and patiently captures the hard-working lives, governmental racism, and the critical importance of family in Georgia’s generational Black farmers. Shot over nine years by Shyne, its beautiful black and white cinematography suggests enduring timelessness in her tribute to the legacy honored. “Seeds” begins with a funeral that unites young and old, men and women, all sharing memories amidst support of each other. In the following scene, a heartwarming intergenerational connection, one of many in the film, is unobtrusively but movingly depicted. Riding home from the memorial, in the back seat of a car, an elderly Clara explains death and shares sweets pulled from her purse with her grand-niece Ebere. Their close bond, their comfortable interaction, exemplifies the personal relationships that define “Seeds.”
Succeeding scenes present a snapshot of public and private moments that editor Malika Zouhali-Worrall seamlessly stitches together. This compilation includes a daunting array of work completed over the next months: harvesting acres of cotton with huge machines, repairing an array of critical machinery, herding and recapturing cows, hand picking enormous watermelons, shucking pecans, and hauling harvests to businesses and private homes. Alternately, the families enjoy BBQs, fireworks, and music, with quiet conversations captured through car windows and on porches. Of particular note is Carlie Cokrell, 89 years old, who visits an eye doctor early in the film. In the 1930s he inherited one of the oldest Centennial farms from his great-grandfather Charlie who owned the land since 1883. Equally memorable is Willie Head, Jr. who cares deeply for his great-granddaughter Alani, an exuberant girl. Willie speaks of and exemplifies in his behavior the most important aspect of his life: family and living where he can walk across a field to his son’s and daughter-in-law’s home.
This heritage is both astonishing and profoundly impressive, especially given the financial problems. Struggling against the Department of Agriculture’s inaction and racist treatment of Black farmers, the principals in “Seeds” join the March 1, 2023 protest in Washington, D.C. Nevertheless, several phone calls before and after their attempts to receive the funds promised them (and already distributed to white farmers in similar circumstances) result in no funding action. This may in part account for an alarming statistic, namely, in 1910 Black farmers owned 16 million acres. They now own only one and a half million acres.
After I first saw “Seeds” at the 2025 True/False Film Festival in Columbia, Missouri (a farming area as well), the discussion turned to the complex music and sound in “Seeds.” Contrasting the ethereal of the church choir and the quiet on the bus to D.C. to the scraping, loud metal sounds of the various machines, this range expresses the density of the subjects’ multidimensional world. Being invited to share all these individuals’ lives is a privilege and a pleasure. Winner of the 2025 Sundance Film Festival U.S. Documentary Jury Prize and also on the 2025 Academy Award documentary shortlist, “Seeds” screens at Webster University’s Winifred Moore auditorium Friday, August 7, through Sunday, August 9, at 7:30 p.m. each evening. For more information: Webster.edu/filmseries