A 4-part documentary series on the Brotherhood of Elders Network.
Some seeds aren't planted for us. They're planted for who comes next.
Founded in Oakland in 2011, the Brotherhood of Elders Network has spent over a decade holding space for Black men and boys to define manhood on their own terms. Seed People traces that work across four episodes — from the organization's roots, through what presence and embodiment look like in practice, into the inherited memory of land, and finally to what's being planted for generations not yet born. Blending intimate testimony with the metaphor of the seed — patient, hidden, generational — the series asks what it means to do work you may not live to see finished, and to trust that it grows anyway.
The docuseries highlights how elders, organizers, fathers, artists, educators, and young people have built a lasting network around cultural connection, shared responsibility, healing and Black self-determination.
EPISODES
Ep. 1 — Rooted in Oakland
Captures the origin story of BOEN and sets up the challenges Black men face.
Ep. 2 — Art of Being a Black Man
The challenges Black men face and how BOEN is addressing them through culture.
Ep. 3 — The Land Lives in Us
Explores our complex relationship with land and how it can free us.
Ep. 4 — Seeds of a Black Future
The next generation finds new ways to bring the seeds to fruition.
In October 2026, Episode 1 of Seed People premiered at the Oakland International Film Festival.
Seed People is produced by Telescopic Media and Game Changers Films, powered by Forward Ever Media.
Executive Producers: Arnold Perkins, Joe Brooks, Greg Hodge, and Cheo Tyehimba Taylor.
Co-Directors: Khepera Batties and Cheo Tyehimba Taylor.
Producers: Spencer Whitney and Khepera Batties.
Director of Photography: Khepera Batties.
Camera Operators: Shaka Jamal, Wallah Umoja, Chris Darby, and Khepera Batties.
Editors: Khepera Batties and Jessica Jones.
Dedicated in memory of Joe Brooks.
