Taglines: United by revolution, divided by the past.
In 1976, after years of mysterious absence, Marcus (Anthony Mackie, The Hurt Locker) returns to the Philadelphia neighborhood where he came of age in the midst of the Black Power movement. While his arrival raises suspicion among his family and former neighbors, he finds acceptance from his old friend Patricia (Kerry Washington, Ray, Lift) and her daughter.
However, Marcus quickly finds himself at odds with the organization he once embraced, whose members suspect he orchestrated the slaying of their former comrade-in-arms. In a startling sequence of events, Marcus must protect a secret that could shatter everyone’s beliefs as he rediscovers his forbidden passion for Patricia.
Night Catches Us is a drama film directed and written by Tanya Hamilton and stars Kerry Washington, Anthony Mackie, Wendell Pierce, Jamie Hector, Tariq Trotter, Damali Mason, Amari Cheatom, Nakia Dillard, Christopher Kadish and William Zielinski.
Filming took place in Summer 2009 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Director Tanya Hamilton said of the film; “There’s a distinct lack of content specific to what it is to be a black American, the variations in that experience, what life is like for people who are ordinary. Those are the stories I want to tell.”
Tanya Hamilton has explained that the story, which took her 10 years to finish, was based on her creative ideas mixed with historical facts: “I liked weaving this world of fiction and pieces of fact, but I didn’t want to feel like I was getting it wrong, so I just did my thing. It’s really just about people, and that I thought I could understand.”
Night Catches Us (2010)
Directed by: Tanya Hamilton
Starring by: Kerry Washington, Anthony Mackie, Wendell Pierce, Jamie Hector, Tariq Trotter, Damali Mason, Amari Cheatom, Nakia Dillard, Christopher Kadish, William Zielinski
Screenplay by: Tanya Hamilton
Production Design by: Beth Mickle
Cinematography by: David Tumblety
Film Editing by: John Chimples, Affonso Gonçalves
Costume Design by: Maren Reese
Set Decoration by: Daniel R. Kersting
Art Direction by: Michael Ahern
Music by: Tom Paul
MPAA Rating: R for language, some sexuality and violence.
Distributed by: Magnolia Pictures
Release Date: December 3, 2010