Griffith's 1915 film, reframing the source material's white supremacy and Lost Cause narratives as the central target. The work isolates the Gus-Flora storyline and imposes deliberate alterations: Gus is recast as an amalgamation or hallucination blending with newly introduced Black characters Sam and Tom, who are depicted as freedmen turned Confederate captains, while Flora is made less sympathetic and dies accidentally after throwing stones at a bird.

These narrative and casting changes function as direct interventions meant to subvert the original's plot mechanics and conventions, elevating racial misidentification and imposed identity as the installation's driving framework. Creator Stan Douglas has stated his intent to confront enduring prejudices and ideas of identification after being horrified by the 1915 film, confirming the progressive messaging as foundational rather than incidental. The introduction of new Black characters specifically to challenge the racist plot and casting conventions turns the piece into a vehicle for systemic racism commentary, crowding out any neutral engagement with the historical source and rendering the ideological overhaul the dominant element that compromises the work's entertainment value.