2021 MLK Day Film Festival

For this year's King Holiday, the Martin Luther King Jr. Research and Education Institute at Stanford University hosted a free, four-day webinar and film festival, from the evening of Jan. 15 through Jan. 18, 2021. On the eve of the presidential inauguration, the festival featured over 20 documentaries as well as musical performances and panel discussions that addressed Dr. King's unanswered question: "Where do we go from here?" If you missed the festival or have not had a chance to see all films, we have provided a list with more information on how to continue watching. 

The webinar consisted of Zoom meetings with our director Dr. Clayborne Carson that took place throughout the weekend, in which he spoke with registrants on a range of topics, from Bay Area civil rights history to the legacy of the African American Gandhians. The schedule of discussion topics can be viewed below under PROGRAM.

The films and performances cover a range of topics, from the history of the civil rights and anti-apartheid movements to James Baldwin and Martin Luther King's global visions. A full list of featured films and short descriptions can be viewed under PROGRAM.

The festival introduced the World House Project, a new initiative of the King Institute in partnership with the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford. The festival was produced in partnership with the Martin Luther King Jr. Freedom Center, California Newsreel, Clarity Films, the Camera as Witness Program (Stanford Arts), the Office for Religious & Spiritual Life at Stanford, and the Kunhardt Film Foundation. It was made possible with support from XQ Institute, and other donors.