Nightjohn

One of the most powerful and overlooked family films of the past decade, Nightjohn tells the moving story of 12-year-old Sarny, a girl enslaved on a southern plantation, whose life is changed by learning to read.

This free screening is presented in conjunction with Member Apreciation Days at the Wexner Center. Pick-up tickets at the Wexner Center's ticket office on the day of the screening. Sarny is taught by Nightjohn, a man who successfully escaped slavery but courageously returned in order to teach others. Sarny soon learns that knowledge, for all its dangers, also brings power. Based on a young adult novel by Gary Paulsen, Nightjohn was produced for the Disney Channel by venerated African American filmmaker Charles Burnett. (USA, 103 mins.)

The film's subject is slavery, so there is a moderate degree of implied violence and intense subject matter.

Screening courtesy of the Disney Channel.

Please note: If you would like to discuss the specifics of any film before viewing it with your child, please call Shelly Casto, educator for school and family programs, at (614) 688-3986.


series support credits

Presented by Cardinal Health and the Ohio Arts Council.

Education season presented by Bank One.

Season support for film/video provided by the Rohauer Collection Foundation and the Corporate Annual Fund of the Wexner Center Foundation.


series special thanks

Special thanks to Kenny S. Kwak, Kenny & Co. Entertainment; Sara Duran, Walt Disney Pictures; Placida Romero, Disney Channel; Tim Lanza, Douris Corporation; Anna Lehmann, First Run Features; Marie Bonnel, Cultural Services of the French Embassy, New York City; and Francesca Breccia, Media Luna Entertainment.