Congratulations to Eric and Anabel for winning the Best Documentary Award at the Charlotte Film Festival last night! The award is the Indy Truth Award for Best Documentary and is a very prestigious award. 

 

The film will show again at 3:30 on Sunday. Eric and Anabel were featured on two Charlotte NPR radio programs. Check them out at the 9500 Liberty website.

Here are the upcoming plans for these talented film makers:

Next stop, we will be premiering in DC on October 1st at the DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival as the opening night film. You can buy tickets here for the screening and reception.

http://www.apafilm.org/festival-2009/9500-liberty/
This is our big hometown premiere screening with the “stars” from the film and a big after party so it is not to be missed if you are in the DC area.

This is the list of scheduled screenings including Prince William County, Honolulu, St. Louis, San Diego, Charlottesville, etc. We are adding more screenings including in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles in the coming weeks. http://9500liberty.com/screenings.html

Thank you for supporting us throughout these months. Some of you have been with us for nearly two years. In fact, the second-year anniversary of the creation of the 9500 Liberty YouTube Channel will be celebrated on October 9th with the residents of Prince William County with a special community screening of the film at St. Paul’s Church in Woodbridge.

 

Please plan on seeing the film. According the the website:

9500 Liberty reveals the startling vulnerability of a local government, targeted by national anti-immigration networks using the Internet to frighten and intimidate lawmakers and citizens. Alarmed by a climate of fear and racial division, residents form a resistance using YouTube videos and virtual townhalls, setting up a real-life showdown in the seat of county government

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69 Thoughts to “9500 Liberty Wins Charlotte Film Festival for Best Documentary!”

  1. Diversity Gal

    Congrats Anabel and Eric! I can’t wait to see the DC premiere!!

  2. Elena

    Congratulations to Annabel and Eric on the wonderful recognition their film has earned. They have been so dedicated to getting the message out about what happened in Prince William County. Although we have moved past that very dark period in our history, I will never forget the fear and darkness that seemed to envelop our county government. It’s interesting, you can see the tactics of bullying prevail on the discussion of health care also. Isn’t it possible to come from opposing views and not dehumanize people, not shout, not use a serious issue as a political football?

    What happened in Prince William County is more about HOW we discuss than WHAT we discuss. No meaningful solutions can come when prejudice and fear prevail over common sense approach. Probable Cause was rightfully stricken from the resolution and what remains is infinitely more fair.

  3. hello

    why is that comment in moderation?

  4. Emma

    “national anti-immigration networks”

    Precisely the kind of distortion that keeps me from giving these screenings the time of day.

  5. hello

    liberal film makers – celebrated and awarded

    conservative film makers – sued and investigated

  6. Moon-howler

    What distortion is that Emma?

    Do you deny that the PW BOCS received email from people all over the United States? How do you think they got involved? Could it be ‘anti immigration networks?’

    I don’t know about you but I don’t like outsiders from the other side of the country making local decisions for me. This was a debate that should have been local and stayed local. It was an end run at best.

    I felt the same way about Disney. Decisions were ultimately made by people who couldn’t even find Manassas on a map.

  7. hello

    * * off topic alert * * Health Care Reform update – it’s now confirmed, if you don’t buy coverage and pay the $1,900 fine you could face a $25,000 penalty and face a year in jail.

  8. D.V.Ant

    Hello

    How long before you and your attacks are booted off this blog?

    If your are too blinded by your indoctrination to see the difference between making a documentary where everyone involved knowns your name and your occupation and amateurs sneaking around doing entrapment, then there probably is not much hope for you to ever understand. Keep worshiping your heros.

  9. hello

    Attacks? Indoctrination? What, like this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zrsl8o4ZPo

    Why would I be ‘booted off this blog’? I’m not attacking anyone, I’m not calling anyone names. Would I be ‘booted off this blog’ because I have a different point of view, because is disagree? Lighten up… 🙂

  10. Elena

    FAIR believe that ALL immigration should be halted. THAT is anti immigrant.

  11. Emma

    I don’t know about you but I don’t like outsiders from the other side of the country making local decisions for me

    Moon, would you then agree that EVERY SINGLE BOCS member was influenced by outsiders and thus incapable of voting in the best interests of their own constituents?

  12. Rick Bentley

    The Acorn video makers had a real effect on society. Because they exposed something real, and surprising.

    Park and Byler have produced disposable pseudo-entertainment which will have no effect. Selective and manipulative editing may be able to produce something that will keep a few festival-goers awake, but it’s hardly going to produce anything that gets distribution to speak of or affects anyone’s opinion.

    Let’s face it, the 9500 Liberty thing is strictly amateur hour.

  13. Moon-howler

    Emma, Every BOCS member was influenced. My problem is most of them were blind-sided by an onslaught of email. They do not have the staff to confirm the address of everyone who emails them. What difference does it make which of them were influenced and which were not. It was the anti-immigration groups who were email-blasting.

    I felt this tactic kept those of use without a political agenda out of the discussion. The die was cast before the average person even know what was going on.

  14. Moon-howler

    Rick,

    I think you are making some allegations that are purely opinion based. Did you ever contact Eric to give him your position. He would have listened and included you.

    To say that 9500 Liberty had no affect on society is simply laughable. Shall we start enumerating? That truly falls into the ‘dream on’ category.

    Amateur hours is laughable. That explains the award, for sure. Rick, you can do better.

  15. Censored bybvbl

    Congrats, Eric and Annabel! Your film should be a cautionary tale for other jurisdictions eager to leap blindly into the immigration debate.

    Rick, as a film lover you should know that no one shoots a film in its entirety without editing. There wasn’t a lot of opposition to “9500 Liberty” until Greg became upset at the response of his minions to his Gospel Greg interview. Then – suddenly – he blamed Eric and Annabel instead of his own loose lips. (If you don’t think he was influenced by their film, you only have to look at his own desire to become a filmmaker. But his video attempts are amateurish. Talk about unskilled – too loud and ham-handed music, too many divided screens, and -OMG! – opinionated speakers.)

    Hello, sometimes comments end up in moderation because of a typo made by the poster in either their name or email address. Believe me, I’ve done it several times. There’s not always a reason to be paranoid or even suspicious.

  16. Really, 9500Liberty, no matter what you think of them, pioneered the unveil-as-it-happens method on You Tube. I’m not sure there are any documentaries like it out there. And let’s face it—other than the regular media picking up on the official BOCS news and the interviews with the same people again and again (and we know who they are), Annabel and Eric did a wide sweep of interviews, offering multiple perspectives mainstream media couldn’t possibly have gotten. It’s the “inside scoop” whether we like what is shown or not.

    Incidentally, Eric has won other awards: Byler’s film, Kenji’s Faith, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 1995, went on to win six film festival awards. He is hardly amateur. Annabel “won The Cameron MacIntosh Award for her playwriting at Oxford University and was selected as a fellow for Film Independent’s Filmmaker Lab in 2005.” And Annabel is this amazing lady who travels to other countries and helps women. They do things most of us would never have the guts or talent to do. Even if you hate their guts, you have to admit they have done some big things in their lives. And to me, they are a credit to our county.

  17. Emma

    So they got a lot of emails, so what? Can you imagine what the White House gets every day? You are making it clear that EVERY LAST ONE of the BOCS members was mesmerized by emails and had no choice.

    I guess I’m grateful to be living in the City of Manassas, where we’re not ruled by such utter nincompoops (EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM, apparently).

    HOw did you feel about “outside influences” threatening the Manassas City Council with lawsuits over their efforts to curb residential overcrowding and to remove Mr. Ferndandez’s racist wall?

  18. Emma

    Hmmm, and didn’t the BOCS vote unanimously for the resolution? So I guess it really does make a difference which ones were influenced and which were not. Apparently, they all were more interested in a bunch of anonymous emails than in what their own constituents were saying at board meetings, by phone, in the media and in person to them. It’s always struck me as odd that Marty Nohe is such a celebrity on this board, when what you’re saying is that he is just like all of the other misguided incompetents on the BOCS.

  19. Censored bybvbl

    Emma, did you send our BOCS an email regarding the immigration resolution? Just curious.

  20. Rick Bentley

    “I think you are making some allegations that are purely opinion based. Did you ever contact Eric to give him your position. He would have listened and included you. ”

    My wife wouldn’t want me to put my name in it, especially given that if I made any slip of the tongue or looked bad from some angle that it would possibly become a centerpiece of the film. It is obvious to me that the main thrust of the film is to make people they don’t agree with look stupid.

    “To say that 9500 Liberty had no affect on society is simply laughable. Shall we start enumerating? That truly falls into the ‘dream on’ category.”

    Well, the Rule of Law Resolution passed 9-0 and nobody knows those 2 from a hole in the wall. They’ve had a lot less effect than, say, Greg Letiecq.

    Censored, as a film lover, it’s obvious to me that those two are on a Michael Moore trip and that it’s intrinsically biased and worthless.

    “They do things most of us would never have the guts or talent to do.”

    Well, they have “balls” to come here and tell us how to live, I’ll say that.

    “Even if you hate their guts, you have to admit they have done some big things in their lives. And to me, they are a credit to our county.”

    I don’t hate them but to me they are people who came here to make our County look bad. They deserve no kudos for anything they’ve done.

  21. Emma

    Mr. Fernandez and his MWB handlers were nothing BUT “outside influences.” He started off protesting a PWC initiative in the City of Manassas, for some reason, and then it just seemed he got more and more confused about what the heck he was even yelling about in the first place. I actually started to feel sorry for that pathetic little sap by the time the wall came down.

  22. Emma

    And don’t forget, Pinko, Eric has his very own Wikipedia entry that he authored himself. You can’t get any more genuine celebrity than that!

  23. I wouldn’t say he’s a celebrity, Emma. I think he’s got talent and so does Annabel. And I think they have had a huge impact on the immigration discussion.

    Rick, let’s not forget Annabel and Eric are Gainesville residents and have been for awhile. They didn’t “come here.” They were already here.

  24. Rick Bentley

    I don’t think Fernandez was confused at all. I think he’s anti-gringo and very consciously tries to spit in the eye of the people of this area.

  25. Elena

    Emma,
    At least they LIVED in Virginia and LIVED adjacent to Prince William County as a seperate jursidiction. California is pretty far to be sending comments to our BOCS.

  26. Elena

    Rick,
    If you believe that Probable Cause would have remained were it NOT for the influence of the film, you are simply not being realistic.

  27. Moon-howler

    How did *I* feel about the wall? I have made that real obvious since it was first ‘built.’

    The PWBOC cannot be compared to the White House. Members of the BOS have said many times, they responded to who they thought were their constituents. This one isn’t real tough to follow–its how politics often works. However, as a local, I resented the deal being done before those of us who weren’t insiders even had time to digest it.

    And finally, it was a not so cheap election ploy. They hopped aboard the immigration train.

  28. Censored bybvbl

    Emma, don’t conveniently forget that the City also stirred up a hornet’s nest with its definition of family. As a City property owner, Mr. Fernandez was no outsider.

    Rick, I wouldn’t agree that Eric and Annabel had no effect on our county’s resolution. Greg, with the aid of FAIR, got that mess rolling, but the 9500 Liberty videos had the ability to neuter it. The videos showed what people – politicians and their constituents alike – were willing to say both publically and into a microphone. That image was often not flattering. The speakers at the marathon meeting had only themselves to blame if they stood at the podium (and before the tv audience ) and said things that made them look like bigots or hysterics. The pols had to worry about whether they’d look like the hicks many Northern Virginians think that PWC residents are. They’d worked hard to get this county away from its cheap housing/bedroom community reputation. And then they blew it.

  29. Moon-howler

    Rick, Eric would have kept your name and face out of the film. He has done that for several people. You should have contacted him. I do think you have important things to say that would have been a valuable part of the film.

    They made no one look stupid. People make themselves look stupid.

  30. Moon-howler

    Censored is correct. 9500 Liberty stopped the avalanche.

    This was so predictable. We post about Eric and Anabel winning an award and the usual gang comes to denigrate them. The very people who denigrate them probably do not know them nor have they seen the film.

    The attack and deflect mode certainly ate its Wheatie’s today.

  31. Emma

    No Wheaties–too many carbs and no sticking power.

    The videos are old news. People are damned sick of being told how racist they are if they oppose illegal immigration, the monstrous healthcare bill, among many issues. Eric and co. are not building any bridges here by replaying this crap.

  32. Emma

    And when are May and Nohe up for re-election? I imagine they should be paying a stiff electoral price for their racist vote. Can’t wait to see that thread.

  33. Censored bybvbl

    Emma, you obviously aren’t considering the tactical use of a “yes” vote when you don’t have enough “no” votes to stop the damage. You’ve gotta vote “yes” if you want to bring it up again.

    Just because you want to whine, whine, whine, doesn’t mean that everyone is uninterested in the subject.
    Health care – whine, whine, NO, No, whine, whine, name-call, whine some more.

    Immigration – whine, whine, threaten, whine, No, NO, whine

    Bush’s war spending – silence

    Obama’s & Bush’s bailout – whine, whine, NO, No, OMG NO, whine, whine

    Birth certificate – excitement!!!!

    Death panels – whoopee!!! Reason to namecall, threaten , and whine

    You guys bore the pants off me.

  34. Emma

    Just curious, can you show me anything I have said in support of Bush’s war spending? Or “whine” about immigration (you bore ME to death with THAT particular mischaracterization).

    I suppose it’s intellectually easier to lump me in with the “you guys” monolith, Censored. Sure beats reading.

  35. RingDangDoo

    @Censored bybvbl

    >>> You guys bore the pants off me.

    Really!?

  36. Emma

    And “death panels”? Show me where I brought THAT ridiculousness up.

  37. Slowpoke Rodriguez

    Wow. That’s almost an Oscar, isn’t it?

  38. Slowpoke Rodriguez

    The Indie Truth Award. Watch out, Godfather! Look out, Citizen Kane! Here comes…..this thing.

  39. Censored bybvbl

    Emma, you didn’t say all of that stuff but you’re one of several posters who are routinely critical of practically every topic yet offer few solutions. For example:

    “The videos are old news. People are damned sick of being told how racist they are if they oppose illegal immigration, the monstrous healthcare bill, among many issues.”

    Some of them are racist. If you aren’t, don’t be offended.
    And those of us who live in this county are concerned over how our tax dollars are spent – trying to enforce immigration law is a responsibility of the federal government. So a continuing expenditure of our tax dollars on an immigration issue is still a concern and not old news.

    This is not the thread for it, but what is your solution to healthcare? Aren’t you in that field? If you’ve suggested some solutions in another thread, point me in that direction and I’ll be glad to read it.

    I could name five or six of you guys and gals who come in for your daily whine and little else.

  40. Congratulations to the filmmakers for their hard work!

  41. Moon-howler

    I might have posted that video before. Sorry about that. Actually, it doesn’t matter because it fits the topic. Because of the attention this film will be drawing to our area, we really do all need to put our best feet forward.

    If it’s tired to us, it won’t be to all the people who haven’t seen the film. And very few people have seen the final film that won the award. Remember, all those youtube videos were a work in progress. It was interactive from start to finish.

  42. Last Best Hope

    Now, in fairness, is important to distinguish between a person who is anti-immigration and a person who is anti-illegal immigration. Clearly, we had both sorts operating in Prince William County 2 years ago. There were many, including myself, who believed that the fiscal argument was on Mr. Letiecq and Mr. Stewart’s side at one point. Then, we as a county, and a majority of the BOCS learned otherwise and the law was changed. We ought not be ashamed that we tried an experiment, the experiment failed, and we made a change. That is what democracy is all about.

    However, I was and remain very concerned about the fact that the “experiment” was not entirely our own, and that K-street lobbying firms had a big hand in how and whether our BOCS represented us. Truly it is not possible to make that distinction between anti-immigration and anti-illegal immigration with regard to these lobbying groups, both of which have admitted to manipulating events in Prince William County to fit their national goals of reducing immigration (not merely illegal immigration as has long been in their mission statements).

    Members of their groups go before Congress and they go on CNN and they are very straight forward about this. There really is no need for us to argue about it here. They say things like “we are not against immigration, but we’d like there to be less of it.” “We’d like to reduce it.”

    Well, substitute a specific ethnic group for “immigrant” and try saying it out loud: “We are not against _____ but we’d like there to be less of them.”

    Once you begin talking about removing human beings, whatever the category by which you distinguish them, you are going to elicit a great deal of scrutiny and deservedly so. There are many things to be proud of in American history, but there are stains on our history as well, and tragic errors we must seek to avoid.

  43. Slowpoke Rodriguez

    This took second place at the film festival:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nQ-O3c1sjjI&feature=popular

  44. Moon-howler

    In what category?

    Here is a list of all the winners in the various categories:

    http://blogs.creativeloafing.com/theclog/2009/09/25/charlotte-film-festival-winners/

    I didn’t see that one listed, Slow.

  45. @Last Best Hope
    LBH, I agree with you on this and am glad you make the distinction. However, we should not be “experimenting” with PEOPLE, and that is what we did when we passed the original resolution. It wasn’t just immigrants who suffered–it was everyone caught up in the conflict.

    Policies affect PEOPLE, not just through their pocketbooks, but in the way they and we are allowed to live our lives. Policy can affect the way we interact with one another. Policies can also create slippery slopes if we allow them to.

    The original policy and even the aftermath through which discrimination is still supported in some arenas have created gross inequity in the way we treat others. We have whole groups of “the other” who continue to be mischaracterized, demonized and persecuted, even if subtly.

    Discrimination didn’t start with the resolution, and it won’t end with a mere tweaking of policy. What that policy did was give carte blanche to every hate group in the United States to say, “We won! Let’s celebrate PWC!”

    That the original resolution even existed says something about us. If we don’t like what it says–what its history indicates–we must ensure this county moves forward socially as well as economically for the good of all of us.

    Hate groups, hear this: you didn’t win. And you won’t. The “keep out” sign has been posted.

  46. Emma

    Censored, you can look for yourself. You demand “solutions” even though you admit you haven’t even bothered to see what I’ve put out there. I realizae it’s more fun to shout down opposing views instead, and a heck of a lot easier than really listening.

    Actually, when you stand back a bit, it almost looks like town-meeting behavior, doesn’t it?

  47. Last Best Hope

    Emma, it was town hall behavior in PWC. We were the originators of it. The anger, the paranoia, the hatred, it was all too palpable. I hope no one in PWC is proud of that fact, but I must say I am less ashamed now that I see it everywhere in the country. It’s just what people do I guess in the age of polorizing media and blogs.

    Madam Pinko, I do recognize that there is and was a human cost. I didn’t mean to reduce it to pocketbook issues. But the Board’s responsibility to us as citizens is very much tied to pocketbook issues. They tax our property value and use the money to provide travel infrastructure, schools, public safety, etc. In my judgement, the Immigration Resolution was first and foremost about politics. If it had been a was financially, with regard to our tax base, and the real duties of county government, I think they would have kept it on the books regardless of whatever human suffering it may have caused. It was the tax dollars they were wasting. It was the tax base they were destroying. That’s why they changed the law.

  48. Censored bybvbl

    Ha ha, Emma, just as I suspected -you’re more interested in being snippy than in pointing to your solutions.

    LBH, I agree that 9500 Liberty’s video and the county’s broadcast of the marathon BOCS meeting gave us a hint of what was to come in future town hall debates…the anger, the raw emotionalism, the lack of cost/benefit analysis, the political opportunism. We shouldn’t be surprised, I suppose.

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