PLANTING SEEDS: NFL Films Screening – A Homecoming for Denise Hurst Green & Eternal Polk!
Denise Hurst Green was instrumental in GAINING GROUND: The Fight for Black Land coming to the big screen. As Content Specialist and Producer with Al Roker Entertainment, Denise focuses on social impact content and how change can occur through storytelling.
“I was driven to tell this story,’ commented Denise. “It was an awakening, understanding the issues presented in the film with Black land loss and the complex issue of heirs’ property. The fact that this is still going on needed to be intentionally amplified. Gaining Ground gave me the opportunity to tell the world.”
Denise comes to this film with a backstory. Her Grandfather, Joseph Coleman, was a sharecropper in Virginia. When Denise discovered the exceptional heirs’ property work that Tharlyn Fox was immersed in at John Deere through the LEAP Coalition, she was compelled to contact her immediately on behalf of all the Black landowners and farmers who are experiencing land loss. They both agreed that a documentary was the best way to tell the stories of those experiencing the issues presented and the solutions available for those going through it.
This backstory also included more than 25 years of production work at New Jersey-based NFL Films which led to a screening and panel discussion at their headquarters on April 9, 2024.
“Screening this important film at NFL Films – the place that honed most of my professional career – was cathartic. We were driven to excellence in storytelling at NFL Films and it’s part of the reason Eternal Polk, a former NFL Films employee as well, was tapped to direct Gaining Ground. It was a full circle moment in many ways for both of us.”
Denise is grateful to NFL Player Kelvin Beachum of the Arizona Cardinals and the NFL Films Black Engagement Network for organizing the April 2024 screening. Having NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and former VP of Football Operations Troy Vincent in attendance along with other NFL Players and League Staff was also significant.
“It was powerful and moving to see the Ed Sabol Theatre filled with the special invited guests and former colleagues from my days at NFL Films,” remarked Denise. “Sitting on the panel with Tharlyn Fox, Professor Thomas Mitchell, and former NFL Player and current farmer Jason Smith sealed my resolve to continue pushing this initiative.”
“I hope everyone that saw the film and was moved by it continues to understand that the fight for Black Land is not over. Hopefully, if you or your family are experiencing heirs’ property issues please contact one of the partnering organizations for assistance listed on the Gaining Ground film website. Oh, and look forward to seeing the film on a streaming channel soon. We’re working on that behind the scenes.”
Catch the discussion at the video link above.