Director Julie Dash Tells the Story Behind the Making of ‘Daughters of the Dust’

Julie Dash’s 1991 film Daughters of the Dust—which follows three generations of Gullah women in South Carolina as they prepare to head North—was a major Sundance hit in 1991, and is particularly notable for being the first indie by a Black woman to gain a general theatrical release. In the over 30 years since its release, though, the film has only grown in power and meaning, even providing inspiration for Beyoncé’s Lemonade; recently, Vogue sat down with Dash to discuss the ongoing cultural significance of Daughters of the Dust.

“I was very excited by the opportunity to depict African-American women, or women from the African diaspora, in a way that was different from what I was seeing on television at the time or what I saw in blaxploitation films,” says Dash, adding, “I always felt that the stories of others were told with such elegance and grace, and our stories were just kind of brutal. I was determined to reimagine how we are on the screen, in historical drama as well as contemporary life, in a way that showed respect for my family and for the community from which I came.”

To hear Dash discuss her film’s costuming, visual references to Gullah culture, collaboration with the film’s production designer Kerry James Marshall and more, watch the full video below: