American Documentary

ACCLAIMED SERIES AMERICA REFRAMED CHASES THE ELUSIVE AMERICAN DREAM

WORLD Channel doc series brings two films this March exploring working class life in middle America with Bring It Home and The Place That Makes Us

BOSTON (March 1, 2021) — This March, America ReFramed takes viewers to Ohio with two documentaries examining the challenges, perseverance and new reality of the American working class. Examining the immediate and long-reaching effects of industrial towns forever altered when their industries leave, the films, Bring It Home and The Place That Makes Us, each explore the lives of men and women in small American towns and rural areas working to maintain their communities against the odds.

America ReFramed, presented by WORLD Channel and American Documentary, Inc., is the Peabody award-winning series showcasing the different lives and people that comprise the modern American mosaic.

Premiering on Tuesday, March 23, is Bring It Home by Carl Kriss. The feature-length documentary examines the journeys of five families in Lordstown, Ohio, after General Motors announces that it will close its factory there. A vital source of employment for the community, the closure leaves the families, and hundreds of other workers, at a precarious crossroads: Should they request transfers to out-of-state GM factories and uproot their lives or, on the chance that the closure is temporary, remain in Ohio and hope that they can get their jobs back if the factory reopens? Balancing their own career trajectories with those of spouses, the needs of children and aging parents, the necessity of health insurance, balancing budgets and more, each family wrestles with the desire to remain in the community they call home amid fears of how their lives and their town will drastically change. Residents are forced to ponder why a company, bailed out by taxpayers and now recording billions of dollars in profits, is shuttering factories, upending lives and leaving dedicated workers high and dry.

On March 30, director Karla Murthy’s The Place That Makes Us takes audiences to the other side of towns abandoned by industry to the reality of life long after the factories and mills, and many of the people, are gone. A hopeful portrait of young men and women living in a quintessential post-industrial American city, The Place That Makes Us follows activists and leaders in Youngstown, Ohio, who have chosen not to leave their hometown, but rather stay and make their lives there while rebuilding and revitalizing the community. Raised in the city long after the industries left and unbeholden to the memory of Youngstown in its heyday, these young people are free to envision a new future. As business owners, city employees and nonprofit organizers, they engage in home reconstruction, community redevelopment, youth engagement and more to create a Youngstown for the 21st century.

“WORLD is proud to help bring the work of Carl Kriss and Karla Murthy to audiences, especially during this unique period in American history,” said Chris Hastings, executive producer for WORLD Channel at GBH in Boston. “As the American middle class continues to feel the pain of massive economic shifts and a widening wealth gap, both Bring It Home and The Place That Makes Us take viewers beyond the headlines on industries leaving the U.S. to see how the loss of these jobs impacts the lives of Americans and how everyday people are fighting to save their families and communities.”

New episodes of America ReFramed debut on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET (7 p.m. CT/ 9 p.m. PT) on WORLD Channel and on worldchannel.org. The episodes can also be seen on Link TV (DirecTV 375 and Dish Network 9410) the Friday following their WORLD Channel premieres. The series also streams on the American Documentary, Inc. site, amdoc.org, LinkTV.org, PBS.org and on the PBS app.

Share, engage and join the social conversation about these films online with the hashtag #MyHomeIsHere highlighting the importance of identity and the struggles individuals and families face across America when situations challenge their sense of community and belonging.

WORLD Channel explores the issues — healthcare, economy, race, immigration, housing and climate change — all told through the lens and narrative of the American people. Check your local WORLD Channel broadcast schedule by visiting www.WORLDchannel.org or follow WORLD Channel on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

About America ReFramed

America ReFramed is a co-production of the WORLD Channel and American Documentary, Inc. The series curates a diverse selection of independent documentaries that brings to national audiences compelling stories which illuminate the changing contours of our ever-evolving country. Viewers will be immersed in stories that span the spectrum of American life, from the streets of towns big and small to its exurbs and country roads. The documentary series presents an array of personal voices and experiences through which we learn from our past, understand our present and are challenged to seek new frameworks for America’s future. America ReFramed is the recipient of a Peabody Award and an Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award for broadcast journalism. The series has earned several Christopher, GRACIE, Telly and Cine Golden Eagle Awards, as well as multiple nominations for Emmy, Independent Documentary Association and Imagen Awards.

America ReFramed Series Credits

Executive Producers: Justine Nagan, Chris Hastings, Chris White
Supervising Producer: Carmen L. Vicencio

Follow America ReFramed on Facebook and Twitter
https://www.facebook.com/AmericaReFramed
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@americareframed @worldchannel

America ReFramed Co-Producers

American Documentary, Inc. (AmDoc) is a multimedia arts organization dedicated to creating, identifying and presenting contemporary stories that express opinions and perspectives rarely featured in mainstream media outlets. AmDoc is a catalyst for public culture, developing collaborative strategic engagement activities around socially relevant content on television, online and in community settings. These activities are designed to trigger action, from dialogue and feedback to educational opportunities and community participation. AmDoc is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

About WORLD Channel

WORLD shares the best of public media in news, documentaries, and fact-based informational programming that helps us understand conflicts, movements and cultures that may be distinct from our own. WORLD's original content examines issues too often ignored by mainstream media by telling stories for and with a diversity of voices. WORLD has won a Peabody Award, an Alfred I. duPont- Columbia Award, a National News and Documentary Emmy Award and numerous national honors— including 1st and 2nd place Native Media Awards, an RTNDA Kaleidoscope Award, a Media for a Just Society Award, two Lesbian & Gay Journalist Awards, a Gracie, and an Asian American Journalists Award. WORLD is a growing platform carried by 173 partner stations in markets representing more than 70% of US TV households. It is also available on WORLDChannel.org and social media platforms. Funding for World Channel is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the MacArthur Foundation, the Wyncote Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts. WORLD Channel is produced by WGBH with the support of WNET and is distributed by American Public Television (APT).

Media contact:
Alimah Boyd
Cheryl Duncan & Company, Inc.
alimah@cherylduncanpr.com