Up against a broken medical system, home birth midwife and educator Nubia Martin is a visionary leader in the Birth Justice movement working tirelessly to create more opportunities and empower BIPOC mothers and families to be able to safely give birth at home.
Film Running Time: 16 min 26 sec
This inspiring and insightful documentary features Nubia Earth Martin, the founder of Birth From the Earth, a non-profit, dedicated to making home birth safe, sacred, and accessible to those who need it the most. As a midwife and educator, Nubia has made it her mission to address maternal health disparities that negatively impact BIPOC women, mothers, babies, and their families. Her commitment to creating equity, quality, and love through her birthing center has offered hundreds of women an alternative to the broken for-profit medical system. The film also features mothers and partners empowering home birth experiences and intimate photos and videos documenting the magical side of birthing at home.
All of the families and mothers in the film requested to be featured, as a way to visually share their birth stories. We hear so many negative stories and continuous news coverage of how Black mothers are dying, and that birth is dangerous and scary. The people who contributed to the film all had a desire to share a different perspective– one of our foremothers and great-grandmothers who all successfully brought forth life in a beautiful way, so that we– their descendants, would be able to uplift these stories present day. Full consent was obtained by all, and throughout the editing process, those featured in the film were consulted for feedback and to ensure that their stories were being shared accurately, and their images were being used with integrity.
– Donate to the Birth From the Earth Non-profit organization
– Donate to the Amber Rose Isaac: Access to Homebirth Fund
Please contact Katy Mejia for screening requests.
Director, Katy Walker Mejia
Producers, Betty Bastidas, Natasha Scully, Katy W. Mejia
Editor, Natasha Scully
Camera, Betty Bastidas, Natasha Scully, Katy W. Mejia
Funded by HUDSY Community Content Fund
AWARDS & FILM FESTIVALS
Best Short Film Award & Best Director Nomination MOM Film Festival 2023
Runner-up for Best Documentary Short : Denton Black Film Festival 2024
March 21-30 2025 | Streamed online at ABFF PLAY
Social Justice Now Film Festival
April 2 -6, 2025 | The Broad Theater, New Orleans
Patios New Orleans International Human Rights Film Festival
Tuesday, November 12, 2024 | YoFi Fest, Yonkers, NY |
YoFi Digital Media Art Center
DC Black Film Festival Official Selection 2024
PAST SCREENINGS
11/11/25 @ 6:00PM
The Alchemy of Birth with A3
Roxy Hotel & Theater, New York, NY
Oct. 8th, 2025 @ 4:30-6:30pm
Community Screening at The Family Partnership Center
29 North Hamilton Street Poughkeepsie, NY 12601
Thursday, November 21st, 2024 | Race Flicks @ The Facing Race Conference, | 11am @ Ferrara Theatre St. Louis, Missouri
Jan. 28, 2024 Denton Black Film Festival | Alamo Drafthouse-Denton
June 2023 Premiere @ Hudsy Beyond the Screen | Rosendale Theatre | Rosendale, NY
September 2023 | O+ Festival, Kingston, NY
April 11th 2023 | Black Maternal Health Week Community Screening with MidHudson Chocolate Milk @ Sadie’s Books & Beverages
Things Are Changing Productions LLC 