One Road, a documentary film about The Passage at Chattanooga’s waterfront, has been selected from among more than 1,700 entries for screening at the Nashville Film Festival, the Mid-South’s largest and most international film festival.
The film, which was written, produced and directed by Chattanoogans Mary Barnett and Ann Coulter, tells the story of the Cherokee artists from Oklahoma who created and installed the highly acclaimed Southeastern Native American art in The Passage at Ross’s Landing.
Told in the words of the artists themselves, the film explores the difficult historic and personal issues they confronted in interpreting the meaning of a place tied so closely to the tragic removal of Native Americans from Ross’s Landing in 1838.
"This is a story that could inspire any one of any age in any city in America,” said Ms. Barnett, who directed the film.
“It was a challenge and a privilege for me as a first-time filmmaker to work with and get to know these incredible artists. Because of the support of many individuals and groups in Chattanooga, now it’s not only their story, but one for all of us," she said.
"I’m so proud to be a part of this film because it documents where the Cherokee are now as a tribe, as artists and as accomplished individuals,“ said Pam Harper, the film’s narrator.
“I believe the art at The Passage marks a turning point in America's understanding of its Native American heritage."
Over 16,000 people attended last year’s Nashville Film Festival, which featured films from more than 40 countries.
One Road will be shown with the work of three other Tennessee filmmakers at 4:30 p.m. on April 20 and 4 p.m. on April 24 at the Regal Green Hills 16 Theater at 3815 Green Hills Village Dr.
Copies of One Road can be purchased at A Novel Idea on Frazier Avenue, the Tennessee Aquarium and the Chattanooga Regional History Museum.
All proceeds from the film go to the Native American Fund at the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga.
Support for the film was provided by the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga, Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga, the Tennessee Arts Commission, and Hunter Museum of American Art and the Chattanooga Regional History Museum.