CAIN follows the story of an African-American sugarcane farmer and the subsequent unravelling of his livelihood in the wake of discrimination and harassment. It's a personal story, but one that speaks to the wider narrative of systemic and insidious racism that exists within the American farming industry. It is poignant, emotional and timely, and a story that deserves to be heard.
Directed by Phoebe Ford
Produced by Maddie Stone
Tell us a bit about yourself & your filmmaking background.
I (Phoebe Ford) directed this short and Maddie Stone produced it. This is both our first film. I work as an Assistant Producer at the award-winning feature documentary company Passion Pictures in London. I have worked on various feature documentaries including the recently released 'Citizen K' directed by Alex Gibney. Maddie works in documentary development at Universal Pictures.
People may be familiar with the story of the Provost family from the 1619 podcast. How did you learn about their struggle and why did you decide to choose them as the subject of your documentary?
We came across the Provosts and their story in an article that was published about them in The Guardian. Myself and my friend and producing partner Maddie were working together at a documentary company at the time, and were looking at making our first short film together. We were instantly struck by the Provost's story and it really moved us. We felt it was a story that deserved to be told and shared as widely as possible. The Provosts are wonderful people and we feel so privileged that they welcomed us into their lives and let us tell their story.
What do you hope to achieve with your film?
The film is intended to be both emotive and thought-provoking. We hope that our film will move people, raise awareness and bring the Provost's story to the fore. We also hope that it makes audiences reflect and think about the systemic racism that exists all around them, in every facet of society, and in communities closer to home.
Do you have any tips for documentary filmmakers looking for their next subject?
My tips for filmmakers looking for their next subject would be to try and find something personal and doable (the opposite of what we did with our first short!)
Any film recommendations that we should check out?
I recently re-watched the French film 'La Haine' released in 1995. It's themes are still relevant today and the cinematography is stunning. Two of my favourite documentaries are 'Let's Get Lost' about the turbulent life and career of jazz trumpeter Chet Baker and 'Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse' which documents the production of Apocalypse Now, the 1979 Vietnam War epic directed by Francis Ford Coppola.
Interested in getting your work selected as Short of the Week?