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Nothing but Love in God's Water

In "Nothing but Love in God's Water," the Bull City Doc Squad continues its exploration of Durham, NC's African-American heritage (vimeo.com/bullcitydocsquad). The documentary explores the past and present of the city's legendary White Rock Baptist Church. White Rock has been (and still is) home to many of the city's black leaders, including the key figures that established Durham's Black Wall Street and North Carolina Central University. Combining interviews with church leaders, members, archival photographs, and footage from the church’s ministry efforts, “Nothing but Love in God’s Water” provides the viewer with a rich understanding of the profound significance of the black church to African Africans and, more generally, American society. Produced by the Bull City Doc Squad, a NCCU student documentary team advised by Bruce dePyssler, an associate professor in NCCU's Department of Mass Communication.

  • Bruce dePyssler
    Director
    Durham's Mayor Bell, In the House, Upbuilding Whitted
  • Daniel Hargrove
    Videographer/Sound
  • Autavius Smith
    Videographer/Sound
  • Kaylee Sciacca
    Archival/Photo Research
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    24 minutes 59 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 5, 2018
  • Production Budget:
    300 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Premier - White Rock Baptist Church
    Durham, NC
    United States
    November 19, 2017
    Premier at White Rock Baptist Church
  • Hayti Heritage Film Festival
    Durham, NC
    United States
  • 51st Annual WorldFest - Houston
    Houston, TX
    United States
    April 20, 2018
    Bronze Remi for Doc less than 60 minutes
Director Biography - Bruce dePyssler

The Bull City Doc Squad is a documentary production team based at N.C. Central University in Durham. "Nothing but Love in God's Water" was directed by mass communication student Daniel Hargrove. The team is advised by Bruce dePyssler, an associate professor in the Department of Mass Communication at the N.C. Central University. Bull City Doc Squad, a now-and-again team he forms with this HBCU's students to document the past and present of the African American community in Durham, NC. Other documentaries produced by the Bull City Doc Squad have documented the first high school built for the Black community in 1922 ("Upbuilding Whitted"), a squad of senior Black cheerleaders the year they won the NC Senior Games ("In the House"), and, for the Howard Alumni Association, a retirement tribue to Mayor Bill Bell ("Durham's Mayor Bill Bell"), and a profile of Federal Magistrate Judge Joe Webster, ("Judge Joe - A Life of Calm Purpose").

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Director Statement

Ralph Hattersley said this about photographs: “We are making photographs to understand what our lives mean to us.” It's no stretch to say that that applies to documentaries as well.