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 When Bruce Orenstein was invited by his friend, Bob Hercules to serve as an advisor on a new documentary about legendary community organizer, Saul Alinsky, Orenstein said "of course." But under his breath he was saying to himself, "this is the documentary I wanted to make!" Rather than go head to head, the two decided to collaborate, embarking on a six-and-a-half year odyssey. They produced a history of Alinsky's work in Chicago, focusing on his efforts organizing workers in the Union Stockyards and his innovations in bringing together labor, churches and workers for a common goal. About a year into filming, Orenstein and Hercules determined that the story of Alinsky is as vibrant today as it was when he was alive. They added a second half, tracing recent organizing efforts in Texas and East Brooklyn, NY. The producer-directors feel THE DEMOCRATIC PROMISE should be seen, not only for its historical significance, but because of what it says about today's world. "The concern in the '30s was fascism...with the poverty in the Depression, everything was up for grabs," says Hercules. "Now the problem isn't fascism, but apathy and disgust in the political process." Both Hercules and Orenstein have activism running through their blood. As a student at Ann Arbor in the late '70s and early '80s, Hercules (co-director/co-producer) studied filmmaking and became passionately interested in labor unionism, making an early documentary, THE ROAD TO HAYMARKET and later producing the cable series LABOR BEAT. "I've always been interested in things that work, creating change rather than being part of something that's remote. I saw the labor movement as already organized, a natural place for people to go." Now co-owner of Media Process Group, a Chicago-based production company, Hercules' credits include BASEBALL'S HEIRLOOMS, narrated by Jeff Daniels, which chronicles America's oldest classic ballparks, and DID THEY BUY IT?, about U.S. media coverage of Nicaragua's 1990 national elections. He was a frequent contributor to the PBS series THE '90S and formerly chairperson and board member of Deep Dish Television Network-the country's only grassroots satellite network. Bruce Orenstein (co-director/co-producer) grew up in working-class Chicago and spent 15 years organizing in Chicago and Seattle, receiving training at Alinsky's Industrial Areas Foundation. Profoundly influenced by Alinsky's books, Reveille for Radicals and Rules for Radicals, Orenstein says, "they helped me focus and took my hot anger and turned it into what Alinsky called cold anger." Believing video to be an effective tool for community organizing, Orenstein founded the Chicago Video Project (CVP), a non-profit production company that produces videos for advocacy and community-based organizations. CVP productions are used by Chicago groups to advocate for campaign finance report, living wage legislation, tenants' rights and affordable housing programs. |
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