Detroit Rising: How the Motor City Becomes a Restorative City is being embraced by global audiences since its virtual world premiere in July.
Award-winning, San Francisco-based filmmaker Cassidy Friedman (CIRCLES, VOICES BEYOND THE WALL) directed the series, and I produced it. Detroit Rising spotlights the groundbreaking, Black-led initiatives that are leading Detroit to become America’s first restorative city.
Detroit Rising won Special Mention (Best Documentary) last week at the Venice Shorts Film Festival’s monthly award competition. The California-based festival’s mission is to “provide an international media platform for a diverse group of short filmmakers.”
As part of the competition, Detroit Rising was also mentioned among the festival’s winners in a recent article in L.A. Indies Independent Film Magazine.
Nearly 500 registrants from four continents supported last month the Virtual World Premiere of Detroit Rising. The screening was followed by a panel discussion of the series’ main protagonists.
Attendees ranged from a retired nun who used the restorative practices highlighted in our film to aid Rwandan orphans after the 1994 genocide to a member of the New York City Fire Department. Many supporters said they saw the film as an inspiration during this time of racial reckoning in the United States.
Inspired by the vision of BANR Founder Ted Wachtel to highlight the transformative work in Detroit to build a new reality, the five-video series follows me into the city’s classrooms, courts, and executive boardrooms as I witness the power and potency of restorative practices to repair harm, restore relationships, and build community in nearly every sector of the city.
Through restorative practices, the series’ main protagonists dismantle entrenched policies that foster distance and avoidance while simultaneously building an ecosystem of connection and community.
We want to increase the opportunities – whether through film festivals, sponsored screenings, or licensing — for more people to see the revolution by conversation the series’ main protagonists engage in to promote democracy in everyday life. Please stay tuned for more information about Detroit Rising screenings and events.
Detroit Rising is now available to rent. Click here to get your copy now.
