Pioneers of African American Cinema: The Scar of Shame (1929)
Director: Frank Perugini Run Time: 120 min. Rating: NR Release Year: 1929
Starring: Ann Kennedy, Harry Henderson, Lucia Lynn Moses, Norman Johnstone, William E. Pettus
Country: United States
Language: English
February 3, 2023 | Reception begins at 5:30 p.m. followed by opening remarks and a feature presentation of Frank Peregini’s The Scar of Shame (1929) and selected short films at 7:00 p.m. The Gallery at Gateway Film Center is open for viewing throughout the evening.
Learn more about the Pioneers of African American Cinema series at Gateway Film Center here.
About the film:
When a young woman escapes from her abusive father, she is rescued by an aspiring composer, but encounters opposition from his class-conscious mother.
“quite possibly the best independent black film of the silent era”
—Donald Bogle
This presentation of The Scar of Shame (1929) includes four minutes of newly-restored material. Mastered in HD from 35mm film elements from the American Film Institute Collection and 16mm film elements from the Pearl Bowser Collection, preserved by The Library of Congress. Music composed and performed by Makia Matsumura.
About the filmmakers:
Frank Peregini was born on November 26, 1888 in Italy. He was a cinematographer and director best known for The Devil’s Confession (1921), The Valley of Lost Souls (1923) and The Scar of Shame (1929), written and produced by David Starkman, an Austrian immigrant who helped found the independent silent film studio Colored Players Film Corporation with Sherman Houston Dudley, an African American vaudeville performer and theatre entrepreneur. Based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the studio was founded on the vision of a black Hollywood free of the traditional black stereotypes, and the collaboration between the black cast, white crew and interracial production team was an integral part of the company. The Scar of Shame (1929) is the studio’s most famous film.
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