"Includes an abbreviated version of Birth Of A Race." -Los Angeles Times

Called "the landmark of American motion pictures" by Leonard Maltin, The Birth Of A Nation was the most successful film of its time. However, this success was a double-edged sword, illuminating how the influence of popular art and entertainment carried a social responsibility. The difficult racial content, and the fact that director D.W. Griffith portrayed the Ku Klux Klan in a positive and heroic light, aroused passions 75 years ago and continues to do so today.

This edition has been digitally transferred from the finest 35mm print at the International Museum of Photography at George Eastman House. While not a formal restoration of the 1915 edition, evidencing minor changes made by D.W. Griffith in later years, it has been transferred at the correct frame rate of 16fps with authentic color tones electronically re-created. The original score by Joseph Broil has been compiled and reorchestrated by RJ Miller, recorded and remixed completely in the digital domain.

As a vocal protest against racial hatred, inspiring independent and black filmmakers conceived The Birth Of A Race as an antidote. By the time the film had passed through the hands of several backers and creative hands, only a pale shadow of its original intention survived. The Birth Of A Race is a feature-length motion picture running approximately one hour. For this special DVD presentation as a companion piece to The Birth Of A Nation we have prepared a special digest version running approximately ten minutes. The nature and intent of the original film has been observed in this abridgement.