SYNOPSIS:

DAVID WINSTON returns home from school to his home on a prosperous cotton plantation where he is drawn to IFE, a Black domestic. Realizing there is hardly an opportunity for slaves but serving their White masters, he begins teaching her to read and write, which is lawfully forbidden with severe prosecution. During off-hours, David spends many hours with Ife and other slaves. For the first time slaves could voice out to a White man, their future boss. Through story and song he discovers African culture, history, and tradition suppressed by White oppressors. Elsewhere, suspicion and hearsay spread among White slavedrivers. They and family attorney WEBER grow concerned about their livelihoods on the day David will inherit the plantation. While David's parents are away on business, Weber conspires with OVERSEER BRECK and an envious cotton competitor to steal the plantation. Weber provides evidence of David teaching Ife to local law enforcement. David is arrested and Ife is given to a new owner whose identity is kept from him. During a brawl in jail, David escapes and becomes a hunted man. Hiding in a church, David discovers the plot and Ife's whereabouts. He brings the news to his father who disbelieves him. David therefore takes matter into his own hands. He organizes an exodus to lead the slaves to freedom in the North. David risks life and limb in this intense, dramatic saga of the Old South, weaving together the intrigue, tradition and romance of a bygone era. A story not soon forgotten.

FIRST LIGHT