Coming straight from Sundance with their respective hyped docs “Energy” – a Netflix Authentic – and “Union”, North American director/producer Yance Ford and his Canadian counterpart Brett Story gave an empowering speech on March 20th at the “Movie: Movie” session. makers in Dialogue” from Copenhagen. , where they exchanged ideas about building energy in American society, capitalism, race, and sophistication divides historical and modern views.
“Energia”, which competed at CPH:DOX for the Human Rights Prize, is a hard-hitting documentary essay on the origins of policing in the USA over 300 years, addressing its dynamics and impression on American society. “I’m concerned about U.S. institutions, power and control in our society,” Ford said of his sophomore film and series about his Oscar-nominated film “Sturdy Isle,” acquired by Netflix for global distribution in 2017.
“After the murder of George Floyd (in 2020), I noticed the way the police acted with unfiltered violence against people protesting and decided to take a step back. I started asking basic questions, like what the police do, who are they there for, who do they police and why.”
To delve deeper into the management system from a historical perspective and reveal how the racial and class outlook of US law enforcement has become out of control, the filmmaker drew on a powerful wealth of interviews with speakers, activists and archival materials.
“We introduced archival producer Jillian Bergman early in the process,” Ford explained to the CPH:DOX audience. “She came to my office in Queens (NY), where I had about 100 letters on the wall with plot points, questions. From then on, conversations about topics emerged. Furthermore, I inspired Jillian not to prohibit herself from illustrating, to be experimental. I spent tons of hours testing stock footage with it.”
Asked by Story to expand on some of the themes of his documentary equivalent to ownership, Ford said this concept goes back to the “prehistory” of policing. “Although we normally associate the police with fighting crime, initially it was about maintaining social order and defending property. In the film, through countless rebellions over time, we see people in communities resorting to destroying property as a solution to current political discontent. Property appeared in the film, asking viewers what it means to be unruly. So I found it interesting to reflect on the notion of people as property that needs to be regulated.”
For Ford, it was important to reject the narrative ingrained in people’s psyches that police power is synonymous with heroism and great sacrifice, and is primarily related to fighting crime. “With historical images, I was able to rewrite the concept of police forces being just selfless vigilantes, and to ask what they are for.”
Further involved in dialogue with Story about race as socially constructed and layers of whiteness among immigrants, becoming accustomed to further dismembering communities and achieving control, Ford said, “I’m from Long Island, New York, where the Irish tradition is incorporated into the NYPD. For me, one of the most interesting points (in the filming process) was learning that for some Irish people, in order to be white (and therefore in power), they had to worry about the suppression of other communities. And it happened quickly. Policing was the path to whiteness.”
Asked about the financing and distribution of “Energy”, Ford said: “I pitched the film to Netflix. It was then approved and funded by them, and we are now organizing group screenings for print campaigns with them. All you need is a Netflix account to get the group involved. I will be endlessly grateful to Lisa Nishimura (former Netflix chief executive). The film wouldn’t exist if she hadn’t mentioned certainty,” Ford insisted.
Equally thought-provoking and interesting in its depiction of energetic dynamics, “Union” was presented at CPH:DOX in the F:ACT competition strand following its successful world premiere at Sundance, where it won a Special Jury Prize for the Art of Change.
The real document co-directed by Story (“Prison in Twelve Landscapes”, “The Hottest August”) and Stephen Maing (“Crime + Punishment”, “Quitting”) seems to deal with the complexity of the organization of work, through an intimate portrait from a group of current and former Amazon employees on New York City’s Staten Island as they face a David vs. Goliath battle against the powerful company and attempt to unionize. The film especially highlights the head of the American Labor Union, Chris Smalls.
History (chosen as considered one of the Selection(Top 10 Documentary Filmmakers to Watch in 2019) said she and Maing began working on the photo in 2020. “We knew it would be a long and unlikely battle, but I was more concerned about capturing the intimate moments within the group of individuals, spending time collectively, than whether or not they were successful in their battle for unionization.”
Asked by Ford to address the tension that continually builds within the group, Story said it was at the heart of the film. In addition to the portrait of employees fighting against large companies, on a deeper level, its intention was to explore group dynamics, people’s commitment to each other and to the cause, as a way of combating despair and fragility.
Also asked by Ford about “Union’s” critique of capitalism, Story said that her body of work consists of exploring “what makes constructions visible, using film to portray how we exist in a constructed world, which can be antagonistic.” .
“In this film,” she continues, “capitalism is present everywhere, but it is best described in the metaphorical image of the cargo ship, transporting trillions of products in port, then in vans, and thousands and thousands of workers honking their horns. (in an Amazon warehouse), being told what to do and being alienated.”
The pic was produced by Major, Story with Samantha Curley and Mars Verrone for Stage Floor Productions. Submarine Entertainment is the co-sales representative for Nameless Content material.
“Union” has received support from several philanthropic institutions and funds, including Subject of Vision, Ford Foundation, IDA, Catapult Film Fund, Rooster & Egg Photos and Sundance Institute. “These funds are essential for nonfiction films to exist,” said Story, who hopes his film will attract distributors. “It belongs in theaters, where people can share space and engage in conversation,” she said.
