The 6th Annual Ocean City Film Festival kicks off Thursday, March 3. It’s a few days shy of the end of Black History Month, but right at the beginning the festival offers up some films that speak to the Black history here on the Delmarva Peninsula. Two films in particular spotlight the history of African-Americans in our area. They’re playing that first night as part of the Delmarva Film Showcase. One film is Bryan Russo’s Mr. Tindley. The other is this one from Rob Waters.
Rob Waters is the owner of W Films Media, based in Lewes. He also teaches a class about film at Delaware Tech. About two years ago, the Southern Delaware Tourism organization invited Waters to attend an event in Millsboro at the Nanticoke Indian Museum. There were about a dozen people there, including elders who could talk about the history of the area. Two of those men were Robert Draine Sr., a descendant of Isaac Harmon, the man who used to own the 800 acres of land at Rosedale Beach. Warren “Toby” Jackson is a 79-year-old of Native American descent who Waters also interviewed.
They talked about the hotel that was built at Rosedale in the 1940’s. The hotel was part of the Chitlin’ Circuit, which were a collection of venues throughout the United States that were more hospitable and accepting of African-American entertainers. However, the only thing that remains of that hotel and venue is a historical marker along the side of the road. The hotel and its existence only lives in the minds and memories of men like Draine and Jackson, so Waters wanted to immortalize those remembrances through this documentary.
Waters’ film is very brief. He only talks to the two men, mainly due to others not wanting to go on camera. Also, the film is short because of the fact that there is no physical evidence of the hotel’s existence. The building has since been torn down in service of condominiums that now stand in its place. There are hardly any photographs, drawings, posters or articles of the hotel, so Waters really had scant material to build the story from a visual standpoint.
The 45-year-old says his drone camera is his best friend. He uses it to get establishing shots of where the hotel used to be. His use of the drone became particularly useful during the coronavirus pandemic when he was able to use it to create virtual tours of homes for various real estate companies or others in Sussex County. However, the majority of the film is the two men sitting and telling their stories, their experiences and their lives, which includes rubbing elbows with a wealth of Black celebrities from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s.
One thing that wasn’t in Waters’ film is a story about a white woman in her 90’s, recounting her life with her Black husband. Interracial relationships were obviously a taboo, even into the 1970’s. However, Waters conveyed that this woman and her husband never really felt any of that taboo, at least not while in the area of this hotel and the area of Millsboro. It was like a bubble that this place had around it where various races of people could live, work and even play without the bigotries or discrimination of the outside world.
Rosedale Beach and Resort: An Oral History.
Thursday, March 3 at 7 p.m. at the Performing Arts Center, OC Convention Center.
Running Time: 5 mins.
For more information about this or other films at OCFF, go to https://ocmdfilmfestival.com/.
For more information on Rob Waters, go to http://www.wfilmsmedia.com/.
