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About Us
Hi, We are Stafford and Judy Bailey, producers of the groundbreaking documentary Blacks Without Borders: chasing the American Dream in South Africa. Many of you may have seen it when it premiered on SHOWTIME, or caught it at one of the numerous screenings held all over the country or on The DOC Channel where it’s now airing. If you haven’t, it’s about a group of African Americans who went to South Africa to find the American dream. They included a self-proclaimed hustler, a former heroin addict and a millionaire. They discovered the boundaries that many of them faced in the US didn’t exist in South Africa.Viewer response was unbelievable. We received thousands of emails some from as far away as London, Bahrain and China. South Africa’s ambassador held a VIP screening at the Embassy in Washington, DC and the Congressional Black Caucus featured it at its Annual Legislative Conference in ’09. Famed radio personality, Michael Baisden called it incredible. We appeared as guest on his show twice. Many groups, organizations, schools and individuals wrote us to say they were so inspired by the film they went to South Africa to see it for themselves. Some were so inspired by the film that they relocated there.
In emails we have received people often ask, “when are we going to do another one?” and many have suggested places we should feature. So, here we are ready to launch Blacks Without Borders the series.
About The Series
Once again, our cameras travel to another country as we present an insiders look at African Americans chasing the American Dream on foreign soil. “Blacks Without Borders” is about taking chances. Though their version of the American dream may vary drastically, the one thing they all have in common is they’re desires to embark on new ventures in unfamiliar territory. Living out ones fantasy in an exotic country is extremely appealing. However, in reality exploring your entrepreneurial prowess abroad comes with its own unique set of challenges. For some the experience is more than they hoped for but others may find the vision beyond their reach. As in the original, the interworking of these globetrotters will continue to captivate audiences. Will they find the success that has eluded them in the US? The pressure is on, the backdrop is set, and challenges are real. These are real-life, compelling stories that need to be told.
Why We Need Your Help
We self-funded the original documentary from start to finish, because we wanted to tell the story the way we envisioned it. With no money for marketing or publicity we took our film directly to the people, we started an aggressive grassroots campaign using email, social media and our website to get the word out. People took notice and started supporting the film and as a result we were able to license it to Showtime, The Documentary Channel and DCTV. We sold thousands of DVD’s and digital downloads, more than 40 colleges and universities purchased it for their libraries. All of this was based on word of mouth. We have a network of over 5,000 supporters from the original documentary and with the series we hope to attract many more. Based on all the emails we continue to receive and feedback from cable networks, we know this is something people want to see and cable channels as well as video on demand (VOD) operators will air. We are asking for your help and support to get this series off the ground. Help us fund the Blacks Without Borders series.
Our Plan
We are looking to raise $75,000 for the production of 6 episodes of Blacks Without Borders the Series. This would cover the cost of crews (cameraman, sound, production associate), travel expenses (airline tickets, lodging, food), camera equipment rentals, editing, music, publicity and marketing. $75,000 might seem like a lot to those who are not familiar with TV/film budgets, but it is actually quite low. It is roughly 12,500 per episode. Our goal is to go into production by this summer, shoot all 6 episodes by the end of August, start editing early fall, have the completed 6 episodes ready by the beginning of 2013.
How You Can Help
We are hoping you feel as excited about this project as we are. We would love for you to donate. No amount is too small or too big! In exchange for your generosity we would like to reward you for your support! With each donation you get a VOTE on our destinations for the series. When you pledge your money, in the comments area please enter which destination you would like to see featured. Below are a few places we have down on our list from supporters who wrote to us suggesting places we should go next.
Nigeria
Paris
England
Brussels
Kenya
South Africa Part 2
South America
Australia
You can either vote for a place that is on this list or add a new destination. We will keep tally and update you all along the way. We want your feedback!! YOUR vote counts. Help choose where we go next. We love and appreciate all of the support we have received and now we want your input.
ALL DONATIONS GET A VOTE
Other Ways To Help
You can also help spread the word by sharing our indiegogo link on your facebook pages, linkedin, twitter, blogs, news outlets, forums etc… TELL YOUR FRIENDS! It’s all about Word of Mouth. Like us on Facebook, repost it to your facebook page, tweet it, email it, post on linkedin. We will be keeping you updated every week so you can track our progress and keep this campaign growing strong. If you have never participated in a crowdfunding campaign let us be the first to invite you in!
MAKE
YOUR VOTE COUNT TODAY
Thank You
Our passion is storytelling. We are extremely excited about the opportunity to continue to bring these fascinating stories about ordinary people who have risked it all to find their American dream. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all your support in helping us reach our goal.
Here are a few emails we have received from our viewers:
Thank you for Blacks Without Borders. The Alain Locke Charter School on Chicago’s West Side serves students who have historically been underserved. We are always searching for exposures that will enrich the lives of our students and give them the strongest motivations to achieve at the highest levels and the broadest perceptions of what they can accomplish in life. The Alain Locke student body is 99% African American. Although over 85% of our students qualify for free and reduced lunch, our school was one of seven schools nationally, to be featured in a publication by the U.S. Department of Education for “closing the achievement gap”. I established the World Studies Program at Alain Locke for purpose of affording our students the opportunity to experience, first-hand, what it means to be a citizen of the world and to be globally competitive. After seeing your wonderful film, I knew that a journey to South Africa for the seventh and eighth grade scholars in our World Studies Program was a MUST! Thank you for your kind assistance and thank you again for your powerful film which set the wheels in motion for a group of seventh and eighth grade students from the West Side of Chicago to have what I know will be a life altering experience.
Best regards,
Lennie Jones, Principal
Alain Locke Charter Academy
Principal Jones had this to say after their trip:
Our seventh and eighth grade world studies scholars had a rich and wonderful experience in South Africa. We will never be able to thank you enough for making it possible for us to meet some of the men and women who were featured in your documentary. I cannot begin to tell you how much these generous human beings inspired our children and how kind and gracious they were to them. I retired as the principal in June, but have been very busy with the Alain Locke Initiative’s leadership development program since then. Thanks to you, our trip to South Africa was extra special! Please stay in touch. Lennie
Team on This Campaign:
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Judy Thayer-BaileyCreator/Producer
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Stafford BaileyCreator/Producer/Director