Rainlake provided post production services (and Rainlake’s Kelly Sheehan served as senior producer) on this hour special that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was broadcast on NBC Universal’s cable channel TRIO in 2002.
Eleven days after September 11, 2001, legendary music producer Nile Rodgers reached out to over 200 artists, athletes, celebrities, emergency responders and victims families to re-make his classic hit song “We Are Family” in a dramatic call for healing, and to quell the backlash of violence against Muslims in the United States. Spike Lee volunteered to direct a music video for the song and Tommy Boy Entertainment produced this behind-the-scenes documentary of the making of the recording and how NYC was coping with the aftermath of the attacks. The film was the first full-length documentary about 9/11 to screen at the Sundance Film Festival in 2002 and includes a who’s who of the music and entertainment world from Diana Ross and Patti LaBelle to Joel Gray and Bernadette Peters, the father of Hip Hop culture Afrika Bambaataa, Eartha Kitt, John McEnroe, Matthew Modine, Queen Latifah, Macauiay Culkin, Little Stevie Van Zandt, Jackson Browne, Luther Vandross and many more. The success of the film and the music video directed by Spike Lee led to the founding of the We Are Family Foundation which today builds global coalitions toward tolerance, peace, respect and hope by focusing on education initiatives around the world.
REVIEWS
“The documentary wowed the Sundance audience … “ Reuters
“The addictive beat of ‘We Are Family’ captured the audience at Sundance … the crowd cheered.” Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun Times
“The spirit of hope and unity shines through … the audience [at Sundance] was visibly moved.” CNN
HONORS
Official Selection, Sundance Film Festival 2002
Theatrical Release at Tribeca Cinemas in New York City
Broadcast on TRIO Channel
CREDITS
Director: Danny Schechter
Produced by Globalvision and Tommy Boy Entertainment
Senior Producer: Kelly Sheehan
Senior Editor: Kim Connell