The Learning Tree

The Learning Tree

Directed by Gordon Parks
/ 1969
107 minutes

The story, set in Kansas during the 1920s, covers less than a year in the life of a black teenager, and documents the veritable deluge of events which force him into sudden manhood. The family relationships and enmities, the fears, frustrations and ambitions of the black teenager in small-town America are explored with a strong statement about human values.

Intro and post-film Q&A with with Kenya Vaughn, entertainment and website editor for the St. Louis American