Biography of A. Ifill, Producer

As a child growing up in Washington, D.C., I looked forward to watching the "Eyes On the Prize" documentary every February during Black History Month.  My parents passed down their love of history to me, a priceless trust fund.

As a young adult living in Brooklyn, I arranged my February social events around the TV schedule. I knew that every night would have something good on and I would learn something new about my community.

And after over 15 years of marketing dog food and beauty aids, public relations and event production, I still craved more knowledge. A graduate of the competitive Documentary Center of George Washington University in Washington, D.C, in addition to holding an M.B.A from Howard University and a B.A. from Williams College, I discovered that documentaries burned in my heart space.  This has also led to greater civic involvement – as a mayoral appointed board member of the Humanities Council of Washington, DC and a member of the Black Collective of DC History.  However, every day, I still encounter people who did not know Americans of African descent were elected to national office before 1965.

One hundred thirty-five years after the first black senator was elected, I took a step into different territory—documentary filmmaking and cultural preservation. I created DoubleBack Productions, LLC to bring to light the little-known American stories of people of African descent.  Multimedia and technological innovations and tools allow these stories to always be told. Not from the perspective of what was done to us, but how we chose to fulfill our lives and passions in spite of obstacles put in front of us.

We all need to know where we have been to see where we are.