Drylongso · reception & legacy

1999 · Cauleen Smith

How Drylongso has been received, argued over, and remembered.

The arc

It charmed Sundance, SXSW and Urbanworld in 1999 and earned Cauleen Smith an Independent Spirit 'Someone to Watch' nod — then got no real distribution and effectively vanished for two decades, until a 2022 4K restoration (Criterion, Janus and the Academy) and a 2023 theatrical re-release turned it into one of the great rediscoveries of '90s Black independent cinema.

Its footprint

The title itself does a lot of cultural work — it's a Gullah word meaning 'ordinary,' quoted in practically every review — and since the restoration the film has become a go-to exhibit in the conversation about how many '90s Black indies were simply never given distribution.

Where it stands

A lost-then-found cult object turned canon climber: Criterion-approved, Letterboxd-beloved, and now routinely shelved in cinephile memory alongside the L.A. Rebellion lineage it grew out of.

★ Did you know? Smith co-wrote the film with Salim Akil, who went on to direct Jumping the Broom and develop the Black Lightning TV series — and Drylongso remains Smith's only narrative feature, as she pivoted to a celebrated career as a gallery and experimental filmmaker.

Named by the director

Influences Cauleen Smith has publicly named — the director's own word, distinct from the inferred lines of influence.

Killer of Sheep (1977) — Smith has said it was the one L.A. Rebellion film she could actually see coming up, calling it a beautiful depiction of Black people trying to live and one of the most important films of the twentieth century.
Charles Burnett — Smith cited Burnett's embedded, community-level way of seeing — kids playing, people loving, guys trying to make a buck — as something she hoped to pay homage to.