A Feature Documentary

Esther’s Song.

Esther Phillips, the Poet Laureate of Barbados, searches for healing through poetry and reflection as she explores the painful aftermath of modern slavery on the island where it was born and developed.

Barbados
Poetry
History
Healing
Esther’s Song film poster
Screenings Available

Poetry. History. Humanity.

Feature Documentary✦Esther Phillips✦Barbados✦Trans-Atlantic Slavery✦Screen the Film✦
Feature Documentary✦Esther Phillips✦Barbados✦Trans-Atlantic Slavery✦Screen the Film✦
About the Film

A lens into Barbados and the world.

Esther’s Song focuses on Barbados not for its white-sand beaches and turquoise sea, but for its deep-rooted relationship to the barbaric practice of Trans-Atlantic chattel slavery.

Featured Voice

The film’s architecture is generated from the writings and life experiences of Esther Phillips, Poet Laureate of Barbados.

Historical Grounding

The film presents Barbados as a small country with enormous world influence, considered by many historians as ground zero for the formation and proliferation of Trans-Atlantic slavery.

The Story Architecture

Personal, poetic, historical.

Through the lens of a strong and brilliant artist, Esther Phillips’ poetry brings another dimension for audiences to process the brutal reality of slavery as practiced in Barbados and the wider Caribbean.

01 / History

Beyond Static Facts

Phillips’ accessible and deeply fervent writing allows audiences to go beyond facts and enter a realm of humanity that art forms like song and poetry can convey.

02 / Art Forms

A Tapestry

The documentary blends poetry, storytelling, cinematography, fine art, and a carefully composed original score.

03 / Purpose

Compassion

Every component is designed to provoke audience awareness and insight while engendering compassion.

Themes & Conflict

Reconciliation and reckoning.

Esther’s Song is a story of contrasts between shameful, abhorrent societal behavior and the possibility of reconciliation and forbearance.

Ocean and shoreline
Contemporary Subplot

Drax Hall and historical accountability.

The film explores Drax Hall, described in the source material as the first slave plantation in Barbados and a disturbing reminder of a horrific past.

Drax Hall

The documentary brings attention to land, inheritance, moral responsibility, and the possibility of apology and restitution.

Reparations

The subplot connects Barbados’ history to the complicated and controversial matter of reparations that extends far beyond the island’s borders.

Nonprofit Film

The source material describes Esther’s Song as a non-profit enterprise, created to raise awareness and support dialogue.

Screening Purpose

Make space for dialogue.

Ideal for campuses, cultural institutions, and community conversations.

Campus Screenings
Panel Discussions
Cultural Programs
Educational Partners
Request Screening
Screening Request

Screen Esther’s Song.

Complete the form to request a screening, educational presentation, or discussion opportunity for Esther’s Song.

For more information, the source document lists filmthatdoc@gmail.com as the project contact.