Ava Duvernay’s ARRAY is set to restore and re-release legendary filmmaker Haile Gerima’s SANKOFA on Netflix.

Gerima is a native of Ethiopia who moved to the US in 1967. His 1993 film SANKOFA was the first-of-its-kind story that tells the story of Black resistance. He created it after two decades of research into the trans-Atlantic trade of enslaved African people. The film went on to be selected at the Berlin International Film Festival and AFI Film Festival in 1993. During the film’s initial release, distributors wouldn’t pick it up.

Then, Mr. Gerima and his wife, Shirikiana Gerima, self-distributed through their independent company, relying on spreading the word through grassroots efforts in Black communities. They fought against discriminatory practices and even people who wouldn’t accept the report of the film’s sales. They continued to go city to city, talking about the film and selling their own merchandise, relying on the network of the community.

“It’s important to realize that though our work had been receiving international attention for quite some time, our films did not appear theatrically…It was quite clear that there was almost a resentment…we were very clear…that part of the reason why we were being treated this way was because we were a Black production, from beginning to end,” Mrs. Gerima told Because Of Them We Can.