Documentary Feature
The Secret Song
Directed by 
Samantha Campbell
AFIN 2023 Finalist
- 2023
- 1h 30m
-
USA - English
Stills
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Credits
Written by
Produced by
Cinematography
Editing
Music & Sound
Synopsis
The Secret Song chronicles the final months of Doug Goodkin’s fabled 45-year career teaching music to children in San Francisco. Goodkin’s time-tested methods are thrown into disarray as the pandemic forces schools into “distance” learning, and a music program that always prioritized singing and learning “through the ear, not through the eye” has to adapt to an online format. The film shows the dynamism and adaptability that all teachers find and bring forth in the classroom, and how a sense of belonging helps us surmount hardships and adversity.
Director's Statement
The heart of music education isn’t about mastering an instrument or technique, but about practicing the human skills of improvising, listening and responding, learning what you offer the group, and growing a sense of belonging. I can't imagine a time when these human skills were more important than in the early months of the pandemic, when schools were thrown into such new and challenging circumstances. Kids and adults had to call on their own resilience, and a belief in human connection that can withstand such disruption. Our film’s production started before the pandemic, because I wanted to capture an inspiring educator during the last of his 45 years at the school. But the pandemic’s curveball gave me the opportunity to show the contrast between the richness of in-person learning and the pain of distance learning, and how technology is not an adequate replacement for being together. The pandemic has uniquely bound the world together in one common experience at the same time. Music also has the power to connect us, and the film shows, through the tenacity of teachers and the enthusiasm of students, what can happen when music education is valued. Samantha Campbell San Francisco, CA
What makes this one special
- 2 awards at other festivalsMadrid International Film Festival · Sedona International Film Festival
- Programmed at 17 other festivalsAcross 3 countries
- A first-time filmmaker
Also selected at
2 awards, 15 official selections across 17 other festivals
- WinnerMadrid International Film Festival
- WinnerSedona International Film Festival
- SelectionVero Beach Film Festival
- SelectionCinequest Film & Creativity Festival
- SelectionLone Star Film Festival
- SelectionLouisville's International Festival of Films
- SelectionMiddlebury New Filmmakers Festival
- SelectionMontana International Film Festival
- SelectionSan Francisco Documentary Festival
- SelectionSarasota Film Festival
- SelectionSXSW EDU
- SelectionTacoma Film Festival
- SelectionUnited Nations Association Film Festival (UNAFF)
- SelectionWorldwide Women's Film Festival
- SelectionOrlando Film Festival
- SelectionBarcelona Indie Filmmakers Festival
- SelectionColumbus International Film Festival
Recorded by the filmmaker on their entry.
Director's Biography
Samantha Campbell Director
Samantha Campbell is a filmmaker and advocate. She is the president of The Campbell Foundation, an organization committed to the protection of our natural resources. Her work is devoted to pursuing and advancing projects that lift up stories of human achievement, the environment, community, and the arts. Samantha lives in San Francisco, California with her two children. She will enthusiastically join any singalong. The Secret Song is her feature film directorial debut.
Trailer
Placings
Recognised in these categories at AFIN 2023, as announced that season.
- Best Documentary Feature Finalist
- Best Original Score Finalist
- Best Sound Honorable Mention