It was early 2020 when Emily Ramshaw and Amanda Zamora launched a new national nonprofit, nonpartisan news outlet. The 19th* would report on issues at the intersection of gender, policy, and politics. They agreed to let a film crew document their journey as they covered the 2020 presidential election.
But then a pandemic spread around the globe. The United States and other parts of the world went into lockdown.
The film that emerged about The 19th*, Breaking the News, is not the story filmmakers set out to tell. Nor is it what the participants thought they had agreed to.
With three directors, all women, different ethnicities, the making of the film began to mirror the making of The 19th*: two teams, the film team and the news team, on parallel explorations of inclusivity and diversity.
The 19th* is named after the Constitutional Amendment granting the right to vote regardless of gender. The name includes an asterisk – symbolizing the work yet to be done.
In this episode, we explore the making of the film and the making of the news organization.
In the first segment, we’ll hear from co-founder and CEO of The 19th, Emily Ramshaw.
We spend the rest of the discussion with Chelsea Hernandez, one of three directors of Breaking the News.
For more information on the screening and how to get tickets:
Breaking The News at Jengo's Playhouse
Guests:
Emily Ramshaw, Co-founder, CEO, The 19th*
Chelsea Hernandez, Emmy-nominated filmmaker; director, Breaking the News; producer, Panda Bear Films
