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Logline

With unfettered access, The Body Politic follows Baltimore’s idealistic young mayor into office where he puts his personal and political future on the line to save his beloved city from chronic violence.

Synopsis

The Body Politic is a harbinger of hope in a country plagued by gun violence. Our protagonist is Brandon Scott, a young Mayor who grew up during Baltimore’s most troubling years and now sets out, with unyielding idealism, to change the course of his battered and beloved city. Scott is elected Mayor amid the George Floyd uprising, and he introduces an ambitious plan for violence reduction and police reform that he promises will lower the city’s murder rate. Pundits claim Brandon’s political health and the city’s health are tied to the number 348 – the total murders Baltimore had the previous year, more homicides than NYC, a city 15 times its size. After entering office and barely getting a chance to enact his first safety reforms, violence surges to new highs. As the media & political foes attack his holistic approach, Brandon’s commitment to his principles put his future as a politician at risk.

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Meet the Filmmakers

Gabriel Francis Paz Goodenough — Director/Producer

Gabriel Francis Paz Goodenough is a proud third-generation resident of Baltimore, Maryland. He is passionate about crafting documentaries that challenge conventional narratives about people from places like his hometown. He began his career as a camera assistant on projects such as A BEAUTIFUL MIND, THE SOPRANOS, and HOMICIDE: LIFE ON THE STREETS. He served as a camera operator on the HBO series K STREET and has been a cinematographer on documentaries for PBS, Netflix, and HBO. In 2017 he co-produced the Mexican/USA co-production of the feature documentary AGAVE: THE SPIRIT OF A NATION (SXSW, 2018). From 2018-19 he worked in the Philippines photographing and co-producing Ramona Diaz’s Emmy Award-winning documentary A THOUSAND CUTS (Sundance, 2020) about Nobel Peace Prize-winning journalist Maria Ressa. After returning from the Philippines, Gabriel was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer. Treatment for the disease left him partially disabled and without full mobility in his right leg. Unable to return to his previous career as a vérité cameraperson, he has kept his passion for documentaries alive by shifting his focus to directing. THE BODY POLITIC represents his first time as a feature documentary director.

Dawne Langford – Producer

Dawne Langford is a 2022-23 Sundance Producers Lab Fellow. After years of working as a broadcast television editor, she expanded her role after her acceptance to the PBS Producers Academy in 2013. She shifted her focus to working on independent feature documentaries, including; CHECK IT, KANDAHAR JOURNALS, and FINDING JOSEPH I. Dawne has worked on projects for CNN Films, CGTN, Discovery Channel, and Moxie Pictures in N.Y.C. with director Lee Hirsch. She is also a long-term collaborator with Georgetown University’s History Department and the Film and Media Studies Program, exploring the stories of the living descendants of the 272 enslaved people sold by the Jesuits in 1838. Her primary interest is amplifying traditionally suppressed narratives and presentations of historical events to deepen understanding, support learning, and stimulate community dialogue.

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Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.