St. Clair C. Bourne (February 16, 1943 – December 15, 2007) was an American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

maker, who focused on

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

subjects and addressed social issues. He also developed projects that explored African-American cultural figures, such as

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hug ...

and

Paul Robeson Paul Leroy Robeson ( ; April 9, 1898 – January 23, 1976) was an American bass-baritone concert artist, stage and film actor, professional football player, and activist who became famous both for his cultural accomplishments and for his p ...

. Not only was Bourne a towering figure in the documentary film world but also an activist, teacher, and organizer.

Biography

Born in

Harlem Harlem is a neighborhood in Upper Manhattan, New York City. It is bounded roughly by the Hudson River on the west; the Harlem River and 155th Street (Manhattan), 155th Street on the north; Fifth Avenue on the east; and 110th Street (Manhattan), ...

, New York, his father was journalist St. Clair T. Bourne. The father also wrote scripts for African American documentary filmmakers William Alexander and Edward Lewis. He moved to

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

when he was two years old. He completed two years at the

Georgetown School of Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It is considered to be one of the world's leading international affairs schools, granting degrees at both ...

before joining the

Peace Corps The Peace Corps is an independent agency and program of the United States government that trains and deploys volunteers to provide international development assistance. It was established in March 1961 by an executive order of President John F. ...

. In 1965, the Peace Corps sent Bourne to

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...

where he helped publish a Spanish newspaper, ''El Comeno,'' in

Comas A coma is a deep state of prolonged unconsciousness in which a person cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to painful stimuli, light, or sound, lacks a normal wake-sleep cycle and does not initiate voluntary actions. Coma patients exhi ...

, a settlement adjacent to

Lima Lima ( ; ), originally founded as Ciudad de Los Reyes (City of The Kings) is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rivers, in the desert zone of t ...

. The November 1965 issue of ''

Ebony Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus ''Diospyros'', which also contains the persimmons. Unlike most woods, ebony is dense enough to sink in water. It is finely textured and has a mirror finish when pol ...

'' magazine featured an article about Bourne's efforts in Comas. Bourne graduated from

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York. Established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church, the university has been nonsectarian since 1920. Locate ...

in 1967 with a dual degree in Journalism and Political Science. In 1988, a retrospective of his films was shown at the

Whitney Museum of American Art The Whitney Museum of American Art, known informally as "The Whitney", is an art museum in the Meatpacking District and West Village neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1930 by Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney (1875–1942), ...

. In a 36-year career in which he made more than 40 films, either producing or directing or doing both, Bourne's works were seen on public television, commercial networks and at film festivals around the country. Bourne died in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

pulmonary embolism Pulmonary embolism (PE) is a blockage of an pulmonary artery, artery in the lungs by a substance that has moved from elsewhere in the body through the bloodstream (embolism). Symptoms of a PE may include dyspnea, shortness of breath, chest pain p ...

s following brain surgery on December 15, 2007. He was 64 years old. He was a member of the

Omega Psi Phi Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African-American fraternity. The fraternity was founded on November 17, 1911, by three Howard University juniors Edgar Amos Love, Oscar James Cooper and Frank Coleman, and their faculty advi ...

and

Alpha Phi Omega Alpha Phi Omega (), commonly known as APO, but also A-Phi-O and A-Phi-Q, is a coeducational service fraternity. It is the largest collegiate fraternity in the United States, with chapters at over 350 campuses, an active membership of over 25,0 ...

Fraternities. The finding aid to the St. Clair Bourne Collection can be found at the Black Film Center/Archive at Indiana University, Bloomington, IN.

Filmography

* ''Half Past Autumn'' (2000) * ''Paul Robeson: Here I Stand'' (1999) * ''John Henrik Clarke: A Great and Mighty Walk'' (1996) * ''Heritage of the Black West'' (1995) * ''Sea Island Journey'' (1993) * ''Where Roots Endure'' (1989) * ''The Making of "Do The Right Thing"'' (1988–89) * ''Langston Hughes: The Dream Keeper'' (1986, 1988) * ''On the Boulevard'' (1985) * ''In Motion: Amiri Baraka'' (1983) * ''The Black and the Green'' (1982–84) * ''Let the Church Say Amen!'' (1974) * ''Something to Build On'' (1971) * ''Malcolm X Liberation University: Black Journal'' (1969) * ''General'' (1965, 1988–2002) * ''America--Black and White'' (undated)

References

External links

*
St. Clair Bourne Collection
at Indiana University Bloomington Black Film Center/Archive. *Dennis McLellan (''Los Angeles Times'')
"St. Clair Bourne; captured the black experience on film"
''Boston Globe'', December 20, 2007. *Dennis Hevesi

''The New York Times'', December 18, 2007. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bourne, St. Clair 1943 births 2007 deaths Syracuse University alumni Film directors from Brooklyn American documentary filmmakers Deaths from pulmonary embolism Walsh School of Foreign Service alumni

Biography

Filmography

References

Further reading

External links