'A Singing Stream' Chronicles A Century Of A North Carolina African-American Family

Host Frank Stasio talks with film director Tom Davenport, and producers Ken Daniel and Iverson Landis Jr. about their documentary 'A Singing Stream: Reunion'.

For more than 80 years, the Landis family has gathered at their family farm in Creedmoor, N.C. for a family reunion. The event is a testament to the strong sense of place and kinship within the family.

In 1985, the documentary A Singing Stream: A Black Family Chronicle showcased the origins of the family through its matriarch Bertha Landis. With interviews from Bertha and other family members, the documentary details how soil, songs and storytelling have kept the family together.

In 2015, the grandchildren of Bertha Landis released a sequel called A Singing Stream: Reunion.

Host Frank Stasio talks with Tom Davenport, director of the the Singing Stream series; Ken Daniel and Iverson Landis Jr. , grandsons of Bertha Landis and producers of A Singing Stream: Reunion, about the ways the Landis family's story is similar to others across North Carolina. 

A Singing Stream: A Black Family Chronicle airs at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Nov 15 and at 11 a.m. Friday, Nov. 18 on UNC-TV. A Singing Stream: Reunion airs at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 22 and at 11 a.m. Friday, Nov. 25 on UNC-TV. 

Tom Davenport /

Courtest of the Landis family /

Copyright 2016 North Carolina Public Radio