MLK / FBI: America on a Collision Course

Today we discuss MLK/FBI documentary and dig deep into the struggle between MLK and the FBI.
Subscribe for more from Factual America: http://bit.ly/AlamoPictures

For years Martin Luther King Jr, the leader and hero of the civil rights movement, faced constant surveillance and harassment by the US government. Helping us to learn more about this dark chapter in America's history is award-winning director, editor, and producer, Sam Pollard, whose latest film MLK/FBI premieres on January 15th 2021. Sam Pollard has won three Emmys and along with Spike Lee received an Oscar nomination for Four Little Girls (1997). He is a teacher at the Tisch School of the Arts in New York, and a member at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

MLK/FBI is a complex and nuanced story with a clear protagonist, Dr Martin Luther King Jr, and the antagonist, J Edgar Hoover, who served as the Director of the FBI for almost four decades. Each man had his fatal flaws and each man had his own view of what America should be.

"I’m someone who would do a survey film about anything and anybody. I want to be able to dig in as an anthropologist and archaeologist, to look at the pros and cons, and nuances of human beings and different institutions." – Sam Pollard

Time Stamps:
00:00 - Guest introduction and film trailer.
02:47 - The film we are talking about today with our guest Sam Pollard.
04:00 - When MLK/FBI is being released and what the film is about.
05:40 - The FBI’s surveillance of American citizens, including Martin Luther King Jr.
09:30 - How FBI turned onto MLK’s private life and his extra-marital affairs to discredit him.
11:35 - What mass media were like at the time of MLK’s activities.
13:00 - Who J Edgar Hoover was, his power and influence in the USA.
17:20 - Why MLK/FBI is made now and why it turns out to be so relevant to this time.
19:45 - Why 2020 felt very much like 1968.
23:00 - How recent history has never ceased to surprise us.
26:50 - What the director’s responsibility is when making a film about Dr Martin Luther King Jr.
32:00 - MLK and J Edgar Hoover as the protagonist and antagonist in the film.
34:30 - Why all the participants in the film are commenting off camera.
37:00 - Why the MLK FBI tapes should be released.
40:30 - Sam Pollard’s memories of US society and politics in the 1970s and 1980s.
43:18 - Where the documentary film industry is heading.
46:00 - The next project Sam is working on.

Resources:
MLK/FBI (2021): https://www.mlkfbi.com/
Follow the film on Facebook:   / mlkfbi  
Twitter:   / mlkfbi  
Instagram:   / mlkfbi  

The FBI and Martin Luther King, Jr.: From “Solo” to Memphis, a book by David J. Garrow: https://www.amazon.com/FBI-Martin-Lut...
Eyes on the Prize (1990): https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexpe...
Sinatra: All or Nothing at All (2015): http://www.jigsawprods.com/sinatra-al...
Belushi (2020): https://www.sho.com/titles/3433572/be...

Connect with Sam Pollard:
Website: https://tisch.nyu.edu/about/directory...
LinkedIn:   / sam-pollard-a9b78b5  

Connect with Matthew Sherwood:
Facebook:   / matthew.sherwood.14  
LinkedIn:   / matthewsherwood  
Twitter:   / sherwood1967  

#MLK #martinlutherking #martinlutherkingjr

▬▬ FACTUAL AMERICA PODCAST ▬▬

Factual America explores the themes that make America unique through the lens of documentaries about America. Each episode a guest chooses a film and then discusses it with host, Matthew Sherwood. Guests include leading documentary filmmakers as well as experts on the American experience.

Matthew Sherwood was born and raised in Texas. He came to the UK in 2001 to work for The Economist. Matthew has worked in journalism and publishing and has a wealth of experience writing for publications, interviewing world leaders, and chairing conferences. Formally he spent his time helping diverse audiences understand the global trends impacting upon their lives.

▬▬ ABOUT ALAMO PICTURES ▬▬

Alamo Pictures is a production company that makes US documentaries from a European perspective. Our goal is to create US documentaries for an international audience, remaining subjective by looking at American issues from a European point of view. This helps everyone to better understand America

▬▬ CONTACT ▬▬

Visit our Website: https://www.alamopictures.co.uk/
Follow us on Instagram: @AlamoPictures
Follow us on Twitter: @AlamoPictures
Like us on Facebook:   / alamopictures  
Like us on LinkedIn:   / about