Today I chat with Sophia Nahli Allison about her Oscar nominated short documentary film A LOVE SONG FOR LATASHA. The film is currently streaming on Netflix.
A reimagined narrative of Latasha Harlins through intimate memories shared by her cousin and best friend. The injustice surrounding the shooting death of 15-year-old Latasha Harlins at a South Central Los Angeles store became a flashpoint for the city’s 1992 civil uprising.
As the Black community expressed its profound pain in the streets, Latasha’s friends and family privately mourned the loss of a vibrant child whose full story was never in the headlines. Three decades later, director Sophia Nahli Allison’s A LOVE SONG FOR LATASHA removes Latasha from the context of her death and rebuilds an archive of a promising life lost. Oral history and memories from Latasha’s best friend and cousin converge in a dreamlike portrait that shows the impact one brief but brilliant life can have.
Director Sophia Nahli Allison grew up in South Central Los Angeles and recalls experiencing the 1992 L.A. riots as a four year-old girl. Though Latasha's death was a catalyst for the riots, Sophia wanted to make a film about Latasha's life so she would be remembered beyond the trauma of a Black body, beyond a statistic, a newspaper headline, or an inaccurate Wikipedia page.
To hear my conversation with Sophia, press play on the embedded player below