“All In: The Fight for Democracy”: Doc Opens 9/2; On Prime Video, 9/18!

28 Aug “All In: The Fight for Democracy”: Doc Opens 9/2; On Prime Video, 9/18!

World Premiere: ALL IN: THE FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY. Film presented jointly by Mill Valley & Telluride Film Festivals. Screening is Wednesday, September 2, Bay Area drive-in. Doc will launch globally on Prime Video September 18, 2020.

Mill Valley Film Festival (MVFF) Director/Founder Mark Fishkin and Telluride Film Festival (TFF) Executive Director Julie Huntsinger announced the World Premiere of the Amazon Original “All In: The Fight for Democracy,” to be screened Wednesday, September 2 in the SF Bay Area at the West Wind Solano Twin Drive-In located in Concord.

“We are delighted to be presenting the World Premiere of “All In: The Fight for Democracy,” and partnering with our long-time friends at the Telluride Film Festival,” said Mark Fishkin. “’All In: The Fight for Democracy’ is a film for our times and also timeless; the subject matter could not be more important as we enter this election season. The ability of a great film to not only create empathy, but to activate a cause can never be underestimated. It’s also the personal story of Stacey Abrams, who has devoted her life to equity and a democratic society. ‘All In, the Fight for Democracy,’ is all that, and so much more.”

Julie Huntsinger adds, “How incredible it is to be able to share the important message of a singular woman – the one and only Stacey Abrams! Lisa Cortes and Liz Garbus have created an exhilarating portrait of Stacey and the fight against voter suppression. This is a film for everyone and we hope our spotlight leads to many others.”

Directed by Oscar® and Emmy®-Award nominated filmmaker Lisa Cortés and Oscar®-nominated and Emmy®-winning filmmaker Liz Garbus, “All In: The Fight for Democracy” examines the enduring legacy of voter suppression in the US and features Stacey Abrams, the first Black woman to become the gubernatorial nominee for a major party in the United States.

Fishkin also announced that the 43rd Mill Valley Film Festival (MVFF) will take place Thursday, October 8– Sunday, October 18, 2020 online and in drive-in locations.

The “All In: The Fight for Democracy” screening kicks off the Mill Valley Film Festival’s 2020 Contenders Season. MVFF will celebrate this exceptional and timely work by directors Cortés and Garbus with the first ever Active Cinema Spotlight program, presenting them with the MVFF Award virtually just prior to the screening.

Staying connected has rarely been more important than now, during this crucial time of social distancing and social turmoil. The Mill Valley Film Festival will continue to provide a beacon of connection, information, and inspiration through the power of visual storytelling. Utilizing digital platforms, virtual cinema, and nightly drive-in events, MVFF43 will offer a selection of film screenings, online conversations, workshops, and panels to our loyal audience here in the Bay Area, as well as new audiences around the nation.

About “All In: The Fight for Democracy”

In anticipation of the 2020 presidential election, ALL IN: THE FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY examines the often overlooked, yet insidious issue of voter suppression in the United States The film interweaves personal experiences with current activism and historical insight to expose a problem that has corrupted our democracy from the very beginning. With the perspective and expertise of Stacey Abrams, the former Minority Leader of the Georgia House of Representatives, the documentary offers an insider’s look into laws and barriers to voting that most people don’t even know are threats to their basic rights as citizens of the United States.

About Stacey Abrams

Stacey Abrams is a New York Times bestselling author, serial entrepreneur, nonprofit CEO and political leader. After serving for 11 years in the Georgia House of Representatives, seven as Minority Leader, in 2018, Abrams became the Democratic nominee for Governor of Georgia, when she won more votes than any other Democrat in the state’s history. Abrams was the first black woman to become the gubernatorial nominee for a major party in the United States. After witnessing the gross mismanagement of the 2018 election by the Secretary of State’s office, Abrams launched Fair Fight Action to ensure every Georgian has a voice in our election system. Over the course of her career, Abrams has founded multiple organizations devoted to voting rights, training and hiring young people of color, and tackling social issues at both the state and national levels. In 2019, she launched Fair Count to ensure accuracy in the 2020 Census and greater participation in civic engagement, and the Southern Economic Advancement Project, a public policy initiative to broaden economic power and build equity in the South.

Abrams is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the 2012 recipient of the John F. Kennedy New Frontier Award, and a current member of the Board of Directors for the Center for American Progress.

Abrams has also written eight romantic suspense novels under the pen name Selena Montgomery, in addition to “Lead from the Outside, formerly Minority Leader’, a guidebook on making real change.

About the Filmmakers

Lisa Cortés is an award-winning film producer and director. The film “Precious” (2009), which she executive produced, received Audience Award and Grand Jury Prize for best drama. Marking the acting debut of Gabourey Sidibe, the film was nominated for six Academy Awards® and won two. 2019’s “The Apollo,” an HBO documentary, explores African American cultural and political history through the story of the legendary Apollo Theater. Her directorial debut, “The Remix: Hip Hop X Fashion” (2020), traces the impact of street fashion and African American creativity on global cultural trends. Her early career as a music executive was launched at the iconic Def Jam label and Rush Artist Management; she also was VP of A&R at Mercury Records, and founded the Loose Cannon label. Her film productions have received over 70 international awards and nominations.

Two-time Academy Award®-Nominee, two-time Emmy Winner, Peabody Winner, Grammy Nominee, DGA Nominee, and BAFTA-nominated director Liz Garbus is renowned for creating electrifying archival-driven historical documentaries that retain all the narrative velocity, artistic craft, and conceptual depth of propulsive vérité films, as well as vérité films which take deep dives into today’s most hotly debated topics. Garbus’ latest series “I’ll Be Gone in the Dark” premiered on HBO in June 2020. Her narrative feature debut, “Lost Girls,” premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2020 and was released on Netflix and in theaters in March 2020. “The Fourth Estate,” for Showtime, was nominated for a 2018 Emmy for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series. Her 2015 feature, Sundance opener, “What Happened, Miss Simone?,” a Netflix original, was nominated for a 2016 Oscar for Best Documentary Feature and took home the Emmy Award for Best Documentary or Nonfiction Special. Other credits include: ‘The Innocence Films’ (Netflix, 2020), ‘Who Killed Garrett Phillips’ (HBO 2019), ‘There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane’ (HBO), ‘The Farm: Angola,’ USA (AA nominee 1998) and many others.

About the Telluride Film Festival

The prestigious Telluride Film Festival ranks among the world’s best film festivals and is an annual gathering for film industry insiders, cinema enthusiasts, filmmakers and critics. TFF is considered a major launching ground for the fall season’s most talked-about films.

Founded in 1974, Telluride Film Festival, presented in the beautiful mountain town of Telluride, Colorado, is a four-day international educational event celebrating the art of film. Telluride Film Festival’s long-standing commitment is to join filmmakers and film connoisseurs together to experience great cinema. The exciting schedule, kept secret until just before Opening Day, consists of over three dozen filmmakers presenting their newest works, special Guest Director programs, major Tributes to guest artists, special events and remarkable treasures from the past. Telluride Film Festival is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit educational program. Festival headquarters are in Berkeley, CA.

About Mill Valley Film Festival

Presented by the California Film Institute, the 43rd Mill Valley Film Festival runs October 8-18, 2020. The MVFF is an acclaimed eleven-day cinema event celebrating the best in American independent and world cinema. Located just north of San Francisco, it’s known as a filmmakers’ festival, and the West Coast launch pad for many Academy Award®-winning films, annually showcasing 200+ films from over 50 countries. The MVFF creates a community that celebrates the best in international film as well as Tributes, Spotlights, and Galas with major film talents. The relaxed and non-competitive atmosphere surrounding MVFF, gives filmmakers and audiences alike the opportunity to share their work and experiences in a collaborative and convivial setting.