Goodnight Sally (2016)

"Goodnight Sally" is a short film that focuses on the complex existence of one of America's most controversial figures, Sally Hemmings. Sally is a mixed race slave (75% European and 25% African America) who lives on Monticello, which is owned by Thomas Jefferson. She is also Jefferson's lover. Up until 1998 there was no concrete evidence that Thomas Jefferson was the father of Hemings' six children, however, DNA testing has proved that Sally's bloodline is in fact linked to Thomas Jefferson, placing him as the father with a 99.8% rate. Meaning, Jefferson is the father. However, aside from the fact that Sally was a slave, Jefferson's lover, and her long brown hair, we know nothing else of Hemings, we can only make educated assumptions on the quality of her life. This film explores an older Sally Hemings, who is 35 years old, and is set in 1807, three days before the bill to end the Atlantic Slave Trade Passes. We dive into Sally's views on Jefferson's unfiltered policies and try to answer the question of which version of Thomas Jefferson that Sally knew and loved.