Director’s Statement

Since 1996, I have been creating documentary films about NC artists, sharing stories about unsung heroes, and capturing ways art and artists empower human connection and imagination. Moonchild is a continuation of this work.

After moving to Durham, NC in 1983, I was quickly drawn into Yusuf Salim’s world. I watched Brother Yusuf and others perform at Sallam Cultural Center, festivals, and restaurants, building community and transforming the music landscape through their music. I marveled at how so many musicians drew inspiration and musical wisdom from Brother Yusuf’s  Brother Yusuf’s legacy moved and inspired me and so many others. I want to ensure his story is celebrated and to preserve an important piece of African American history and of Durham’s history.

In 2005, I brainstormed with Billy Stevens, Yusuf’s friend and co-founder of the Sallam Cultural Center, about making a film about Brother Yusuf and his deep musical and spiritual ties to lifelong Baltimore friends Kenneth Murray Muhammad and Daud Ibn Hassan. I shot several hours of footage with Yusuf and friends that year, and then abandoned the project as Yusuf’s health declined the following years.

I revived the film in 2021 after many of Yusuf's musical collaborators and friends as well as his sister and niece agreed to participate in the project. I also sought out BIPOC filmmakers to collaborate in the telling of this story, and in 2023 began working with Co-Director/Editor Rafael Samanez who brought his filmmaking talents and unique perspective to the project and quickly became immersed in the footage, archival materials, music, and research that I had compiled over many years. Over time, as the edit unfolded, Rafael began weaving Brother Yusuf’s musical journey with storylines and connections to Muslim leader Imam Kenneth Murray Muhammad and the legacy bearing of North Carolina Central University’s Jazz Studies Program and students and to Yusuf’s mentee and NCCU professor and band leader Dr. Brian Horton. The power and richness of “Moonchild” has benefited immensely from Rafael’s creative contributions as well as the support and BIPOC perspectives of Assistant Producer Darrell Stover, and Associate Producers Dilsey Davis, Leilani Clark, and Aisha Caruth.  Their experiences, their understanding of diverse histories and the Black, Muslim, and jazz communities contributed to capturing the fullness of Brother Yusuf’s life.

We look forward to sharing Brother Yusuf’s story with a wide audience in 2026 and beyond.

– Kenny Dalsheimer, Director/Producer