Atlanta teenager Sylvia Dorsey, at the Trinity Home Foundation Orphanage in Ghana. Her transcontinental voyage is documented in Ras Tre Subira’s film Black to our Roots. (photo courtesy of www.blacktoourroots.com)

***THE SIGNAL AIRS FRIDAYS AT NOON & 7 P.M. ON 88.1 WYPR***

(Click here for mp3’s of some recent stories from the show. And PODCASTERS, click here for a link to subscribe to The Signal’s weekly podcast.)

• Filmmaker Ras Tre Subira talks with us about his documentary Black to our Roots. The movie follows a group of African American teenagers on their journey through Ghana, a life-changing odyssey that gives them new perspectives on their own identities.
• We meet filmmakers Joseph Cashiola and Nathan Duncan. Their drama, A Thing as Big as the Ocean, tells the story of a chance encounter between two strangers, a meeting that leads them on a journey of self-discovery in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
• Plus: a visit with old-time fiddler Dave Bing, who keeps alive an American music tradition forged in the hills of Appalachia.

HELPFUL LINKS:

Here’s the website for the film Black to our Roots

Here’s the website for the cultural organization HABESHA

More info about “A Thing as Big as the Ocean” is at: http://www.fourbirdspictures.com/ocean/athingasbigastheocean.htm

Clarence Brown shares his poetry, and his story of addiction and recovery, this week on The Signal.

***THE SIGNAL AIRS FRIDAYS AT NOON & 7 P.M. ON 88.1 WYPR***

(Click here for mp3’s of some recent stories from the show. And PODCASTERS, click here for a link to subscribe to The Signal’s weekly podcast.)

• A story about trading the needle for pen and paper: Clarence Brown used heroin for 26 years, but he’s recently turned the corner. With seven months clean, he says each new day is a struggle for mindfulness. To that end, Clarence has discovered a helpful ally – a daily dose of poetic reflection.
• We look at one of the tenets of American life, the pursuit of happiness, with Lee Boot and Stacy Arnold. Their film, Euphoria, explores the benefits of leading a truly meaningful life.
• Plus: Croatian musician Branimir Krstic plays his favorite album on his favorite instrument: Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band… on classical guitar.

HELPFUL LINKS:

Clarence Brown’s story is part of a special radio documentary series called, “Ear to the Ground,” made possible by a grant from Open Society Institute – Baltimore, on the web at www.osi-baltimore.org

Click here for more on the film Euphoria

Here’s a link for Classical Guitarist Branimir Krstic