Project of the Day: Profile of Whittaker Chambers, Author of Spiritual Classic ‘Witness’
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“The Whittaker Chambers Story”
Tweetable Logline:
Feature-length documentary about Whittaker Chambers: journalist, theologian, and writer of the political and spiritual classic “Witness”
Elevator Pitch:
A feature-length documentary about Whittaker Chambers, whose book Witness is a political and spiritual classic. Chambers had insight into the human condition that transcended his time. He was a member of the communist party in the 1920s but after years of secrecy revealed his past – and fingered Alger Hiss. The Chambers-Hiss case was the trial of the 20th Century; the story had espionage, revenge, thrilling escapes and even a subtext of homosexuality. More than a simple spy story from the 1950s, the Chambers story touches on humankind’s quest for utopias – and the role of suffering in triggering fanaticism.
Production Team:
Producer/Writer: Mark Judge, producer/writer
Director/Editor/Cinematographer: H. Paul Moon
Executive Producer: Stana Benesova Kimball
About the Production:
The Story of Whittaker Chambers combines historical narrative with artful reenactment. Mixing interviews of scholars (and eyewitnesses to history) with dramatic tableaus in the style of film noir, it chases facts along a winding tale of espionage, leading to the emotional and spiritual heart of the man behind the story. A first documentary feature on Whittaker Chambers, the film invites audiences to ruminate on the dangers we earlier faced, the truths and fictions behind the Red Scare, and even today, the threats that Chambers foretold. The independent production is planned for release in 2012.
Current Status:
Pre-production.
For more information and to support this project:
Kickstarter Page
Filmmaker Website
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