IFC Acquires Domestic Rights to Martin Luther King Jr Documentary ‘MLK/FBI’ at TIFF
IFC Films has acquired North American rights to the Martin Luther King Jr. documentary “MLK/FBI,” the company announced on Tuesday. The film, directed by Emmy Award-winner and Oscar nominee Sam Pollard, examines the civil rights leader’s treatment by the federal agency in the 1960s.
IFC Films will release the film on January 15, 2021 ahead of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday. “MLK/FBI” was part of the Official Selection for the 2020 edition of the Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and New York Film Festival.
A description of the film reads:
“MLK/FBI” is the first film to uncover the extent of the FBI’s surveillance and harassment of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Based on newly discovered and declassified files, utilizing a trove of documents obtained through the Freedom of Information Act and unsealed by the National Archives, as well as revelatory restored footage, the documentary explores the government’s history of targeting Black activists, and the contested meaning behind some of our most cherished ideals. “MLK/FBI” Featuring interviews with key cultural figures, including former FBI Director James Comey, “MLK/FBI” tells this astonishing and tragic story with searing relevance to our current moment.
“MLK/FBI” was produced by Benjamin Hedin for Tradecraft Films, in association with Field of Vision, Play/Action Pictures, and Cinetic Media. Executive Producers include David Friend, Field of Vision’s Charlotte Cook, Play/Action Pictures’ Jeffrey Lurie and Marie Therese Guirgis, and Cinetic Media’s Kate Hurwitz, Dana O’Keefe, and Steven Farneth.
Based on the book “The FBI and Martin Luther King, Jr.: From ‘Solo’ to Memphis” by David J. Garrow, “MLK/FBI” was written by Benjamin Hedin and Laura Tomaselli.
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