The Norman Studios Silent Film Museum and the Hotel Indigo® Jacksonville will screen Oscar Micheaux’s 1920 silent drama, Symbol of the Unconquered, at the next Silent Sundays event February 23, 4pm. A pointed response to D.W. Griffith’s controversial Birth of a Nation, the film is just one of three Micheaux silents to survive. 

Eve Mason, a light-skinned African American woman, leaves her hometown of Selma, Alabama for the northwest town of Oristown to settle on land inherited from her grandfather, receiving a cruel welcome from innkeeper Jefferson Driscoll on her first night in town. Driscoll, who struggles with his own identity as an African American and longs to also pass for white, learns that Mason’s new neighbor’s land sits atop an oil field. He and a group of fellow villains, in league with “The Knights of the Black Cross”, set out to steal the land. But are they a match for a changing community or a surprise love? 

This special Black History Month screening features a presentation on the enduring impact of Oscar Micheaux, revered as the father of African American filmmaking, by Darryl Reuben Hall, actor, playwright and founder of Stage Aurora Theatrical Company. Stage Aurora is a 501c3 non-profit professional theatrical organization that brings the arts to Jacksonville’s underserved communities.

Jacksonville University's Tony Steve and the Silver Synchro Sounds will provide live musical accompaniment. Tickets are $5 and available at the door (cash or credit) and online. 

Silent Sundays proceeds support efforts of the Norman Studios Silent Film Museum, a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing public knowledge of Northeast Florida's early film industry and the preservation and restoration of Jacksonville’s only remaining silent film studio. The Norman Studios was among the nation's first to produce films starring all African American casts. Find out more at normanstudios.org. 

Located on the lake in upscale Tapestry Park, the Hotel Indigo® Jacksonville is a boutique-style, lakefront property with interior design elements that recall Jacksonville's film history.