Gullah Geechee Culture: Spreading the Richness
As a Gullah cultural preservationist and documentarian, Luana M. Graves Sellars is dedicated to honoring our Gullah Geechee stories and traditions through her work as a podcaster.
Gullah Legacies. Painted Truths.
Years ago, a simple question led to an incredible journey of cultural discovery for me as a documentarian and Gullah cultural preservationist. DNA and research provided me with a tremendous and treasured gift of grounding in self that I could not keep to myself. It was not mine to keep, as it was so much bigger than myself and had to be shared with every child of the diaspora, especially those connected to the Gullah Geechee heritage. This journey inspired me to become a podcaster, sharing stories that resonate with our culture and community, just like Luana M. Graves Sellars has done.
Produced & Directed Award-Winning Documentaries
Colored Troops of the Civil War | Courage. Determination. Survival.
The Colored Troops of the Civil War | Courage. Determination. Survival (has won six awards including the San Diego Black Film Festival | Best Documentary 2025, Best Documentary Feature Film Toronto Indie Filmmakers Festival 2025, Munich New Wave Short Documentary Festival 2025, Global LA Film Festival Best Trailer 2024 and Global Film Festival | Honorable Mention Documentary 2024, Grand Jury Heritage Award - Filmteenth International Black Film Festival 2024, Exceptional Merit - Documentaries Without Borders 2024, Africa USA International Film Festival | Honorable Mention 2024, Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival | Documentary Exceptional Merit 2024, Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival | Documentary Exceptional Merit - Narration Talent 2024, Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival | Documentary Excellence - Research 2024 in addition to 10 festival nominations).
Harriet Tubman | From the Railroad to a Spy
The documentary, Harriet Tubman | From the Railroad to a Spy is broadcasting nationally on PBS and has won six awards, including (Best Documentary Short - Global LA Film Festival, Best Documentary Film - Toronto Indie Filmmakers Festival 2025, Best Film - Africa USA International Film Festival 2024, Exceptional Merit - Documentaries Without Borders 2024 as well as 10 national and international festival nominations.
Juneteenth | The Birth of Freedom
The holiday Juneteenth, commemorates the end of slavery and is the oldest and longest nationally celebrated holiday in the US. June 19th, otherwise known as Juneteenth or Black independence day marks the birth of freedom. The date is significant because June 19, 1865 is when Texas, which was the last Confederate state to return to the Union’s control, which in turn, set the slaves free. Slaves in other states had already received word that they had been freed, however, recognition and organized celebrations didn't really begin until slaves everywhere were free. Sadly, the majority of Americans don’t know or even recognize the importance of this date to our history. Not in just Black History, but an important milestone in American history and the birth of freedom. Since the premiere of this video, President Biden signed into law that Juneteenth is now a federal holiday. This version includes the process that the bill went through to become the US 12th holiday.
Seeking | The Gullah Religious Tradition
The documentary, Seeking | The Gullah Religious Tradition is an in-depth look into a cultural practice that is seldom shared outside of the culture. For the Gullah Geechee, joining the church, at one time, was an ancestral West African tradition called seeking. The practice was based in the thought that since God and the ancestors communicated through dreams, the interpretation of the dream, represented achieving spirituality. The process and resulting dream can become life-altering and is often something that one may never forget. Seeking was mostly experienced on the coastal sea islands from North Carolina to Florida and eventually stopped as recently as the early 1970s.
Lowcountry Gullah YouTube Channel
Check out the YouTube Channel for more cultural videos and podcast shorts.