Life of Abundance is a short documentary exploring the Black experience of grief, loss, and community healing in Harlem, New York. The film follows a diverse group of Harlem residents who participated in a series of focus groups on grief, offering an intimate portrait of how Black communities make meaning of their lives after loss.
Set against the backdrop of Harlem’s rich cultural history, the film juxtaposes personal stories of mourning and resilience with the academic study of grief, revealing where research and lived experience intersect. Created in the wake of COVID-19 and widespread institutional loss, Life of Abundance offers a poetic and complex snapshot of healing and survival.
The film was born out of research conducted by SAFELab, a research initiative founded by Professor Desmond Upton Patton at Columbia University’s School of Social Work.
SAFELab examines how youth of color navigate violence both on and offline and is now affiliated with the Annenberg School for Communication and the School of Social Policy and Practice at the University of Pennsylvania.
