A new groundbreaking documentary series about Newark is premiering on the Sundance Channel. The docu series ‘Brick City’ is Executive Produced by Oscar Winning actor/director/producer Forest Whitaker. The special follows young Newark Mayor Corey Booker on his journey to revitalize the crime ridden city by providing mentorships and opportunities for the community. Check out webisodes and preview clips from the series on the Brick City website and tune in to this doc later this month. Binside TV spoke to Mayor Corey Booker and Oscar Winner Forest Whitaker about Brick City, Newark and President Barack Obama. Stay tuned for that episode which will be airing soon.
Brick City Promos
Sundance Channel’s provocative and eye-opening documentary series “Brick City,” executive produced by Forest Whitaker and filmmakers Marc Levin and Mark Benjamin, takes an in-depth and no-holds-barred look at the immense challenges facing the city of Newark, New Jersey and its outspoken and charismatic mayor, Cory Booker. Making its television debut Monday, September 21st at 10:00pm et/pt and airing for five consecutive nights at 10:00pm et/pt, the program puts an illuminating spotlight on this inner city’s struggles and the resilient community leaders, civil servants and life-long residents committed to making Newark a model for urban renewal in America.
Forest Whitaker in the Bricks
“These personal stories are riveting,” commented Sarah Barnett, Sundance Channel Executive VP and GM.” She added: “The series plays out like a high-stakes drama – about life and death, dreams and disappointments, danger and determination and poverty and promise – but most importantly, it is storytelling at its finest.”
Marc Levin, who executive produced and directed the docu-series, added: “Mark Benjamin and I were captivated by this city and Mayor Booker’s charisma. I grew up near Newark and I can testify, change is real here. But change is hard. It’s authentic human drama and that’s what we wanted to capture. From the personal to the political, the stories were so compelling, we used to joke, ‘We’re going to put the real back in reality programming’.”
Brick City Episode 1 clip 2
In the five one-hour episodes of “Brick City”, the lives of Mayor Booker and Police Director Garry McCarthy intertwine with Jayda, Blood gang member turned youth mentor, who lives with her Crip boyfriend Creep, and other citizens on the front lines. With unprecedented access to both the powerful and the disenfranchised, the series organically brings to life the true challenges and adventures of social transformation. From City Hall to the streets, it creates a vivid portrait of a city at a critical moment in history.
Newark is known as ‘Brick City’ for its architectural style, urban strength, and human resilience. Against great odds, Newark’s citizens and its Mayor, Cory Booker, continue to fight to raise the city out of nearly a half century of violence, poverty and corruption. With Booker, one of the most dynamic young politicians in the midst of the Obama era and his Police Director Garry McCarthy at the helm the city has achieved some impressive results. In 2008, the city has seen a 32% reduction in homicides and continues to work on improvements in housing, employment, ethics reform in municipal government and education. The Mayor, his Administration and everyday Newark residents redress the label that Newark had become a symbol of the great American urban decline. Despite progress, the current economic downturn makes the city’s comeback even more challenging.
The “Brick City” episode titles are as follows:
Episode 1: Summer is Ours – Monday September 21 – 10:00pm et/pt
Episode 2: Struggle – Tuesday September 22 – 10:00pm et/pt
Episode 3: Central – Wednesday September 23 – 10:00pm et/pt
Episode 4: Circus – Thursday September 24 – 10:00pm et/pt
Episode 5: Red October – Friday September 25 – 10:00pm et/pt
Sundance Channel will present encore airings of the series each Sunday at 9:00pm, Monday at 12:00am and Saturdays at 12:00pm et/pt thru October 31.
“Brick City” is executive-produced and directed by acclaimed filmmakers Marc Levin (Slam, Gang War- Banging in Little Rock and “Street Time”); and Mark Benjamin (The Last Party, Jails Hospitals and Hip-Hop). Oscar® -winning actor and producer Forest Whitaker also executive produces. Executive producers for Sundance Channel are Evan Shapiro, Sarah Barnett, Lynne Kirby, and Mala Chapple.
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