Synopsis:
LAND OF OPPORTUNITY dives deep into the tumultuous reconstruction of New Orleans. Through the eyes of urban planners, community organizers, displaced youth, immigrant workers, and public housing residents, this vérité-style documentary reveals how the story of this city is the story of urban America: how democratic processes can fail us, how economic crisis can pull the rug out from under us, and how (im)migration can prove to be a complicated bargain. This is a ground-level view of a situation that has been widely discussed but rarely seen with such texture and complexity.

Programmer's note
In August 2005 the fifth deadliest hurricane in the United States overwhelmed the Atlantic coast. It was also the costliest killing over 1800 people and reportedly causing more than 100 billion dollars in damages. The failure of the federal levies to prevent the massive flooding is only part of the story of Hurricane Katrina. One of the many other narratives can be found Post-Hurricane, in the efforts to rebuild the region where a conflation of politics and socio-economics run supreme. Building is about land, land is about real estate, real estate is about property ownership, property ownership is about wealth, and that wealth must be protected. New Orleans is now about opportunity, a land of opportunity.



Programmer: Allison Wilson-Forbes

Director's Bio

Brazilian-American filmmaker Luisa Dantas has worked in film and television production in the U.S. and Brazil for over a decade on a wide array of documentary and narrative projects. Her most recent endeavor, Land of Opportunity, is a multi-platform documentary project that chronicles the rebuilding of New Orleans through the eyes of those on the frontlines. Dedicated to telling the story of this beloved city and its resilient residents, Luisa relocated to New Orleans in 2006 and has been on the ground following a diverse group of people for five years. In 2005, Luisa co-produced the acclaimed documentary, Wal-Mart: The High Cost of Low Price. She also directed and produced the web-series Voices From the Gulf for Color of Change. St. Joe, Luisa's experimental short video about the demolition of public housing in New Orleans, recently won Best Short at Patois: the New Orleans International Human Rights Film Festival

Production Company
JoLu Productions
1300 Henriette Delille Street
New Orleans, LA
70116   United States
Tel.:
Fax:
Email: ludant@joluproductions.com
Website:

Distribution Company
JoLu Productions
1300 Henriette Delille Street
New Orleans, LA
70116   United States
Tel.:
Fax:
Email: ludant@joluproductions.com
Website:

Technical Information

Type	:	colour
Dialogue	:
Subtitles	:
Running Time	:	96 min.
Exhibition Format	:	dvd
Screen Ratio	:	1:66
Sound	:	stereo