GATEKEEPER
25 minute documentary
Goal: $10,000 for production and post production costs and distribution
Miami-Dade County, Florida is a blooming multicultural community surrounded by biodiverse natural habitats from the ocean, to lakes, rivers, swamps, mangrove forests and coral reefs. But it's also a county struggling to mitigate and adapt to changing weather and rising sea levels.
As tides rise and waterfront homes are compromised, black and brown communities are being pushed out because they are on higher ground. This is called Climate Gentrification. Sourced from the CLEO Institute.
Frontline communities such as low-income/marginalized, BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color), Disabled community, Elderly, Women &children, and the LGBTQIA+ have a harder time finding alternative locations to flee during a storm surge, finding transportation to evacuate in case of severe weather, and struggle financially if their paycheck or income is disrupted. Sourced from the CLEO Institute.
The Top Climate Hazards, according to Climate Central, for Miami-Dade County are: storms, sea level rising, ocean chemistry (acidification and warming), heatwaves, and water deficits (access to clean drinking water). Florida is the most vulnerable state to climate impacts in the United States.
Florida's hardworking families are struggling to provide basic essentials for their families. Sky rocketing inflation and continuing pandemic fallout is affecting Floridians access to food. These are your community teachers, nurses, cruise and hospitality industry workers and college students all in need of support. Sourced from Farm Share, 2022.
This documentary surfaces evidence-based, peer reviewed and published research shaping Miami-Dade County and the Climate Crisis; Seeking to highlight, build and support resilient communities of human and natural habitats in the wake of a changing environmental, economid and political climate.
WHAT YOUR CONTRIBUTION SUPPORTS
Every dollar you contribute will save lives by helping us make this information accessible to the broader community. The environmental, political, and geographical climate is changing in Florida. The climate crisis affects the over all health, justice, economy, immigration, biodiversity, weather, heat and food & water security for the region, and in Miami-Dade County, Florida severe weather doesn't come close to describing the challenges vulnerable populations face. Your contribution will help us raise awareness about these social and environmental issues plaguing this primarily rural, and low income community of color and to help empower them to take their activism and voices to the next level.
Your contribution will help us offset the costs of travel and to create a film that anyone can access and learn from. However, this film will be made no matter what.
Specifically, we need your help with:
Travel expenses during production such as flights, hotel rooms and car rentals
Editing, sound editing and color correction
Custom music/original film score
Legal and insurance
Aggressive PR and online marketing
DVD and other perk production
If we're fortunate enough to meet our goal, we're going to push for better graphics for the credit sequences.
WHAT'S IN IT FOR YOU?
Above all, your contributions will positively impact actual human and non-human lives by encouraging and supporting under represented communities. As well as raising awareness for climate gentrification, food deserts and extreme weather in Florida.
Check out the other perks, including:
Recognition for your generosity on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Digital copies of the poster, film stills and Director's cut of the film
A signed DVD of the Director's cut
An exclusive, advanced online screening of the film with the participants and crew
An actual credit in the film and on IMDB
More!
Note that the final cut of the film can't be distributed until after the world premiere (likely Sep 2023), but the watch party means you'll see it before anyone - and all perks include something that can be delivered right away.
WHY WE MUST MAKE THIS FILM
Survival shouldn’t only be for the privileged. This film focused on the intertwined relationship of the rural communities of Miami Dade county, Florida and Biscayne National Park; profiling the efforts of a minority communities and grass roots organizations as they live, work, and eat with and preserve the natural habitats surrounding their homes. The goal of this film is to change the narrative about Florida rural communities, while inspiring and teaching people about simple and economic ways to help the environment. Through the collaboration of local Miami-Dade residents, this story will bridge the gap between cultural identities and the environment. Our common goal is to support this multicultural community in their fight to protect their ethnic identities and roots tied to Mexico, the Caribbean, Cuba and the rest of Florida itself; aiming to show how a community can work together to embrace the land, and their migrant and trading history. As well as teach viewers how to support an immigrant, farming and low-income community, and take into account how environmental conservation efforts can impact a community positively.
Gatekeeper features the rural communities of Miami Dade County, Florida such as Homestead, Redlands, and Florida City. In collaboration with The CLEO Institute, Farm Share and Robert Is Here Fruit Stand and Farm.
WHO'S INVOLVED
In 2022 we travelled to South Florida to meet with some of the local farmers, community organizers, non-profit leaders and cutting-edge policy advisors to create this story. These interviews are already scheduled and confirmed. We are blown away by the dedication and interest these individuals exhibit towards educating and supporting rural and low income communities in Miami Dade County.
CAROLINE LEWIS
CLEO Institute
Founder and Senior Advisor
DIEGO MOLINA-CASTRILLON
CLEO Institute
School and Youth Programs Manager
STEPHEN SHELLEY
Farm Share
President and CEO, former Mayor and Vice Mayor of the City of Homestead, FL
GILBERTO ZEPEDA
Farm Share
Director of Marketing
ROBERT KADE MOEHLING
Robert Is Here Fruit Stand and Farm
Manager and Family Owner
CREW
I'm also incredibly lucky to have an experienced, star-studded crew:
SHELLEY DAVIS
DIRECTOR & EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Shelley Davis is an artist, storyteller and documentary filmmaker based in North Texas. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Documentary Production at the University of North Texas and she graduated from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2018 with a BFA in Studio Art with a focus in Film, Sound Design and Animation. Her work has been shown internationally in Milan, Chicago, Israel, Boulder, Miami, Portland, Orlando and Washington D.C.
https://www.shelleydv.com
SAJA SUNUWAR
PRODUCER
Saja Sunuwar is currently pursing her MFA in Documentary Production at the University of North Texas. After completing an MS degree in Mass Communications and Journalism from Bangalore University, and working several years in the communication and media field in Nepal, her passion for telling stories that need to be told transplanted her in North Texas. Her documentary filmmaking practice centers around preserving cultures and ethnic identities, while celebrating the beauty of life.
JAELENE RAMIREZ
EDITOR
Jaelene Ramirez is an experienced journalist and storyteller based in North Texas. Her work centers on her passion for telling stories about the environment and giving a voice to underrepresented voice in the media. After completing her dual BA in Broadcast Journalism and Political Science at the University of North Texas, she is currently pursuing her MFA in Documentary Production at the University of North Texas.
ALEXANDER RUSSELL
CINEMATOGRAPHER
Alexander Russell is a cinematographer and storyteller from El Paso, TX. He earned his bachelor's degree in Digital Media Production and is currently pursuing an MFA in Documentary Production and Studies degree at the University of North Texas. He aspires to eventually teach film production to new generations of filmmakers.
TEJASVI GINNELA
SOUND RECORDIST
Teja is a filmmaker working on ethnographic films, experimental films, home movies, docu-fictions based on personal history, globalization, and the impact of technology on local cultures. He also work as a Director of Photography, and has extensive experience with RED, ARRI, Black Magic, and Panasonic range digital cinema cameras, lenses, and lighting. His work can be seen on national networks and streaming platforms, including National Geographic India, Disney+, Hotstar, and TataSky. He's also Proficient with Double System Sound Recording and a trained editor on Premiere Pro.
https://www.instagram.com/teja.sv
MELINDA LEVIN
ADVISOR AND EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Melinda Levin is a documentary filmmaker and a Professor in UNT's Department of Media Arts. Working primarily in the documentary mode, Levin has produced, directed, edited and shot documentaries in the U.S. and abroad, including North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Her works have screened on PBS and broadcast outlets worldwide, and at New York's Museum of Modern Art, The San Francisco Art Museum, The Society for Applied Anthropology, The American Anthropology Association, and The Society for Cinema and Media Studies, as well as several U.S. Embassies, theaters and broadcast outlets worldwide. She holds a competitive fellowship with the MIT Enterprise Forum in Cambridge, Massachusetts. This appointment is in support of her work as founder of a startup company (based in Boston) that is designing a web application for location-based reporting and storytelling.
https://mediaarts.unt.edu/content/melinda-levin
RISKS & CHALLENGES
Our biggest challenge is filming during COVID and Hurricane season in Florida but the interviews will be safely completed and the film will be made.
The only risk is if it isn't as good as it can be. For that, we need your help!
MOOD BOARD
OTHER WAYS YOU CAN HELP
Even if you can't make a monetary donation right now, you can still help us by spreading the word! Your boss, roommate's rich uncle or another social follower might be able to. Money aside, just making noise about the movie will help!
Use the Indiegogo share tools above.
Follow us on @gatekeeper_homestead on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube
Talk about us to people in real life - Interested in learning more or have questions, please email us and we'd be happy to share more details about the production!
Thank you!!