Woodbine Films

Kerra Bolton | Writer-Director

Filmmaking Rooted in Memory

We make films the way memory works — emotionally, nonlinearly, with light and shadow.

Our work is rooted in the lives of Black women and shaped by ancestral memory, mystery, and quiet power. We’re drawn to the stories that live in the margins: unspoken histories, generational hauntings, spiritual awakenings.

Whether documentary or fiction, our films explore what it means to remember — and what it costs to forget. 

Bloodroot Reserve

Feature Film | Southern Gothic Thriller

When Ruth Horne inherits her family’s vineyard, she discovers its legendary wine is made from the suffering of Black women tied to the land. To escape the ritual, she must destroy the legacy that built it.


Written & Directed by Kerra Bolton

The Bitter Reserve

Limited Series | Gothic Eco-Thriller

When soil scientist Isabella Brooks inherits a cacao estate in Panama, every attempt to shut it down makes production rise while women’s bodies pay the cost. As governments and markets close in, the system begins to claim her too.


Created by Kerra Bolton

RETURN OF THE BLACK MADONNA

An experimental short film that blends performance, ritual, and ancestral memory. Return of the Black Madonna honors the resilience of Black women across time, using ritual and layered visual language to call the sacred into the frame.

Directed by Kerra Bolton | 2021

Private screening link available upon request.

“Some stories come as fire. Others come as roots.”

— Kerra Bolton

DETROIT RISING: HOW THE MOTOR CITY BECOMES A RESTORATIVE CITY

There’s the Detroit story you know — and the one you don’t. Detroit Rising explores Black-led grassroots efforts to repair harm and rebuild community through restorative practices.

From classrooms to courtrooms to boardrooms, this short documentary highlights what it means for a city to heal itself — and what’s possible when the work of repair is led by those most impacted.

Produced by Kerra Bolton | 2018

The land remembers. The silence breaks. The stories rise.

This is the opening scene.