Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s Story Productions, which has presented award-winning documentaries such as “Flint: The Poisoning of an American City” and “Trigger: The Ripple Effect of Gun Violence,” is at work on a new film looking at the impacts of industrial pollution and environmental racism.
David Barnhart was talking the morning after the world premiere of his documentary for Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s Story Ministry, “Flint: The Poisoning of an American City,” in its namesake city.
It’s a line that appears twice in the documentary, “Flint: The Poisoning of an American City.”
“What happened here is now happening in other places. It could happen in any city in the United States. It did happen in the city of Flint, Michigan.”
While “Flint: The Poisoning of an American City” is the title du jour for Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s Story Ministry, other films in its catalog continue to get recognition, including an auspicious booking, this month.
Mere moments after the final credits of “Flint: The Poisoning of an American City” rolled, Harold Woodson was on stage of the Capitol Theatre Thursday giving the documentary an endorsement that affirmed it had accomplished some of its major goals.
There is a point in “Flint: The Poisoning of an American City” where we have seen and heard how the Michigan city’s water system was contaminated with lead and the many ways in which public officials caused or allowed the tragedy to happen, and it’s easy to ask, “How has nobody gone to jail for this?”
From the door next to their studio just outside of Atlanta, filmmakers David Barnhart and Scott Lansing have been able to watch the comic book kingdom of Wakanda come to life and iconic cars of “The Fast and the Furious” in full chase.While Presbyterian Disaster Assistance’s (PDA) Story Productions is a relatively modest operation next to the studios that crank out blockbusters such as “Black Panther,” the documentary outfit is making some noise of its own with true stories designed to spark dialogue and action.
