University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications (UFCJC) alumna Jacqueline Olive, M.A.M.C. 2007, is featured in “Directors of Apple TV+’s ‘Lincoln’s Dilemma’ Talk Shedding New Light on U.S. President” published on REALSCREEN on Feb. 23.

Olive is an independent non-fiction filmmaker who worked with Barak Goodman on “Lincoln’s Dilemma,” a four-part docuseries on Apple TV+ that challenges some overly simplistic narratives about the former U.S. president.

According to Olive, she was excited to give a nuanced account of how Lincoln came to be president and how his stance on slavery evolved over time, while also elevating the stories of Black people of the era.

Directors Olive and Goodman provided information on the new series, their archival process and use of animation, and how they created a new project about a heavily researched and discussed topic.

“It’s very short-sighted of us to continue to lean into the myths and the oversimplified stories of Lincoln,” said Olive. “After having a couple of centuries of evolved understanding on this topic, to continue to perpetuate those narratives really discounts all that we know, all of the evolution of our understanding about questions about race, freedom and democracy — all those things that we’ve learned for the past 200 years. When we combine that information and we uplift it, then you have a greater understanding about what’s going on now, and you really benefit from the lessons of Lincoln and the folks of his period.”

Olive was part of UFCJC’s Great Storytellers series in 2020 discussing her debut feature documentary “Always in Season.”

Posted: February 24, 2022
Category: Alumni News, College News
Tagged as: Jacqueline Olive