The Picture Taker is a documentary film exploring the life and work of photographer Ernest Withers, whose path intersected key flash points in 20th century history. Based in Memphis, TN, Withers developed over a million images that came to define America’s civil rights struggle. He photographed the Emmett Till murder trial, the desegregation of Little Rock High, the Montgomery bus and Memphis sanitation workers strikes and was behind the scenes with Martin Luther King, Jr. His lesser-known work: decades of secret FBI service uncovered only after his death. Filmmaker Phil Bertelsen explores how this revelation affected Withers’ legacy.
Withers was a fixture on the Memphis scene and his work captured African American life in a momentous and troubled time. The Jonathan Logan Family Foundation supported the production of the film, as well as extensive archival research. Check out the trailer for the film below.
