Spencer Wilkinson’s Inspiring Documentary About Community and Artists Joining Together to Combat Gentrification
ALICE STREET Screening at KDocs (February 26) & Belleville Downtown DocFest (March 4)
Synopsis : A powerful, colorful display of community and culture is showcased in ALICE STREET, a documentary that follows the intersection of artistic expression and the battle to preserve Oakland’s downtown from the onslaught of gentrification. Two Oakland artists, Pancho Peskador, a Chilean studio painter, and Desi Mundo, a Chicago-born aerosol artist, form an unlikely partnership to tackle their most ambitious project to date, a four-story mural in the heart of downtown Oakland. Their site is situated at a unique intersection where Chinese and Afro-Diasporic communities face the imminent threat of displacement and gentrification. Prior to painting, the mural faces numerous obstacles: complex negotiations with profit-minded property owners, satisfying a community of diverse residents, and resolving the artists’ own aesthetic conflicts. Dedicated to the diverse artists and community groups that intersect Alice Street, it almost immediately faces a seemingly unwinnable fight with a proposed condo that will obstruct the mural, push aside the tenuous bonds the groups had formed and transform the cultural landscape of the area.
Screenings:
KDocs – Saturday, February 26
Belleville Downtown DocFest – Friday, March 4
Director/Producer: Spencer Wilkinson
Executive Producer: Endangered Ideas and 1852 Media
Editors: Spencer I Wilkinson, Jon Ayon Alonso (finishing editor), Ayse Gursoz (contributing editor), Jesse Andrew Clark (contributing editor), Tiffany Mascarenhas (contributing editor), Demondre Ward (contributing editor), Chris Fiorentini (contributing editor)
Cinematographers: Ayse Gursoz, Justin Downard, Korise Jubert, Demondre Ward (Special Cinematography)
Music: Micah Berek
Composers: Micah Berek, Axel Herrera (2nd Composer), Joseph Chen (2nd Composer)
Sound Design: James Berek (sound editor)
TRT: 67 min
Country: USA
By John Wildman
