(2014, 1h 24min)

Trumpeter Clark Terry was such an influential and prolific player that it would have been easy to put together a biopic looking at nothing but his music — and it’s very much to director Alan Hicks’ credit that his movie, 2014’s Keep On Keepin’ On, offers a much more personal overview of what made Terry so special. Instead of surveying his legacy along established narrative lines, Hicks focuses on the beautiful friendship between Terry and Justin Kauflin, a much younger pianist he took under his wing and spent countless hours mentoring. While offering ample demonstration of Terry’s professional legacy, Keepin’ also emphatically underscores what he brought to this life on a personal level, and serves as a graceful, quiet reminder of the power of a simple human connection. “One need not be a jazz aficionado to enjoy this film,” wrote David Lewis for the San Francisco Chronicle, “all that’s required is a smile.”

Artwork: Julie Sevilla Drake, Bear Falls Apart, 2020. Courtesy of the Artist.