''Freedom's Path'' is a 2022

historical History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...

war War is an armed conflict between the armed forces of states, or between governmental forces and armed groups that are organized under a certain command structure and have the capacity to sustain military operations, or between such organi ...

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film written, directed and produced by Brett Smith in his feature length debut. It stars Gerran Howell, RJ Cyler, and

Ewen Bremner Ewen Bremner (born 23 January 1972) is a Scottish actor. His roles have included Shawn Nelson in '' Black Hawk Down'', Julien in '' Julien Donkey-Boy'' and Daniel "Spud" Murphy in '' Trainspotting'' and its 2017 sequel '' T2 Trainspotting''. E ...

. Based on the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

, it won multiple film festival awards in 2022 and had a limited theatrical run from February 3, 2023.

Synopsis

A Union soldier is rescued by a free Black man and his friends, who run a portion of the Underground Railroad. Meanwhile, a ruthless slave catcher is looking to bring them down.

Cast

* Gerran Howell as William * RJ Cyler as Kitch *

as Silas *

Harrison Gilbertson Harrison Sloan Gilbertson (born 29 June 1993) is an Australian actor. Beginning his career as a stage actor, he is known for his role in the 2014 blockbuster film ''Need for Speed (film), Need for Speed''. Early life Harrison Sloan Gilbertson w ...

as Lewis * Mia Tucker as Nora *

Carol Sutton Carol Sutton may refer to: * Carol Sutton (actress) * Carol Sutton (journalist) * Carol Sutton (artist) {{hndis, Sutton, Carol ...

as Caddy * Afemo Omilami as Ellis Freeman * Steven Swadling as Jake Nilsson *

Thomas Jefferson Byrd Thomas Jefferson Byrd (June 25, 1950 – October 3, 2020) was an American character actor who appeared in several of director Spike Lee's films. He was nominated for the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his performance in the 2003 ...

as Abner

Production

The film is based on a short of the same name that Brett Smith released in 2015. The feature length film was produced by Rocket Soul Studios and 1812 Films, with Soulidifly Productions, Rock Hill Studios, Room In The Sky Films and Chicago Media Angels. Producers were AJ Winslow, Jim Pidgeon, Neko Sparks and Steven Swadling. The film has a promotional partnership with

Allen Media Group Allen Media Group, alternately known by its former name of Entertainment Studios, Inc. is an American media and entertainment company based in Los Angeles. Owned and founded in 1993 by businessman Byron Allen, the company was initially involved ...

Filming

Principal photography took place in October 2019. It was largely filmed in and around Fayetteville with filming locations including Prairie Grove Battlefield Park, War Eagle Mill, Lincoln, and Cane Hill. During filming, assistant director David Halls was fired after a firearm discharged unexpectedly on set, wounding a crew member. He would later work as assistant director on the set of ''

Rust Rust is an iron oxide, a usually reddish-brown oxide formed by the reaction of iron and oxygen in the catalytic presence of water or air moisture. Rust consists of hydrous iron(III) oxides (Fe2O3·nH2O) and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO(OH) ...

'', and he became a principal character in the shooting incident that killed

Halyna Hutchins Halyna Anatoliivna Hutchins (; April 9, 1979 – October 21, 2021) was a Ukrainian cinematographer. She worked on more than 30 feature-length films, short films, and TV miniseries, including the films ''Archenemy'', '' Darlin, and ''Blindfi ...

and wounded director

Joel Souza Joel Souza (born June 14, 1973) is an American film director and screenwriter. Career Souza was initially inspired to become a filmmaker after viewing the Indiana Jones film ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'' (1981). As a writer and director, Souz ...

Release

The film premiered at the

Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival The Cinequest Film & Creativity Festival is an annual independent film festival held each March in San Jose, California and Redwood City, California. The international festival combines the cinematic arts with Silicon Valley’s innovation. It i ...

on April 15, 2022. The film was distributed by

Xenon Pictures Xenon Pictures is an American film production and distribution company which releases titles produced by African-American filmmakers for African-American audiences. The label has distribution deals with numerous prominent filmmakers, such as Melv ...

in 128

AMC AMC may refer to: Film and television * AMC Theatres, an American movie theater chain * AMC Networks, an American entertainment company ** AMC (TV channel) ** AMC+, streaming service ** AMC Networks International, an entertainment company *** ...

and

Regal Cinemas Regal Cinemas (also Regal Entertainment Group) is an American movie theater chain that operates the second-largest theater circuit in the United States, with 5,720 screens in 420 theaters as of December 31, 2024. Founded on August 10, 1989, it ...

theaters on February 3, 2023 with part of ticket sales be donated to Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Reception

In September 2022 the film won the Director’s Choice award at the Gig Harbor Film Festival in

Washington State Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

. It also received the Audience Award at both the Cinequest San Jose Festival and Fayetteville Film Festival in 2022. It won the ‘Best of Fest’ award at the Lone Star Film Festival, along with the ‘Festival Award’ at the

San Diego International Film Festival The San Diego International Film Festival is an independent film festival held in San Diego, California, produced by the nonprofit San Diego Film Foundation. The main event has traditionally been held annually in autumn at venues in the Gaslamp Q ...

and the Special Jury Prize at the St. Louis International Film Festival, all also in 2022.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Freedom's Path 2022 films Films shot in Arkansas American war drama films American historical films 2020s English-language films 2020s American films 2020s war films 2020s historical films American Civil War films Anti-war films Films about American slavery 2022 directorial debut films English-language historical drama films English-language war films