A short film documenting the rise of one of Brooklyn’s strongest Democratic Party Clubs is premiering today at The Billie Holiday Theater in Restoration Plaza as part of this year’s Bedford Stuyvesant/Crown Heights Film Festival.
The film, VIDA 45 takes a look at the Vanguard Independent Democratic Club (VIDA) which operates out of Central Brooklyn. The film was shot last year in the Fall and KCP was able to catch up with Kevin Harewood, who directed and produced the film with Stephen Booth, and with Executive Producer, Stefani Zinerman.
Zinerman has held various positions within the political Brooklyn community realm that has consistently helped members to become engaged in the political process and become informed. Currently serving as the VIDA’s Vice President of Membership and Outreach, Zinerman decided to become involved in the film to inspire this generation to get more involved in politics.
“The number of inactive voters in the Brooklyn area is increasing and we wanted to create something that can help turn that around; especially with the political climate we are in right now,” said Zinerman.
While running a citywide adult literacy program, Zinerman previously worked with Harewood on a video for City Councilmember Robert E. Cornegy Jr. (D-Bedford-Stuyvesant, Northern Crown Heights).
Zinerman expressed how she enjoyed working on projects geared towards educating the community about the political process and how it was even more exciting to work on a documentary geared towards the same goal.
“By telling a success story, the film will help the community come together for a common goal. We need to show everyone that when you vote that action serves as an invitation to have constant dialogue with those elected,” she said.
Zinerman believes that voters who stay involved should hold elected officials accountable for their policymaking decisions and the billions of dollars that is being allocated throughout the city.
Brooklyn originally had 10 or 12 Democratic Clubs and VIDA remains the oldest and most prominent black-run club. Founded in the 1970s, Central Brooklyn residents looked to founder Al Vann who was then the head of the African American Teachers’ Association running for State Assembly. That year, Vann was able to get an unprecedented 2,000 and more votes under the Vanguard Independent Party which was primarily Democratic. From there the club created a 7-point plan which has a sincere emphasis on community progress and advancement.
Harewood said that although the project hasn’t been commercially released yet, it has garnered a lot of attention from members of the Central Brooklyn area where they are showing it at this year’s film festival.
Harewood discussed his start in the entertainment industry within the music realm and slowly moving over to film. Being in the industry for 30 years, Harewood spoke about his transition, “Working in the music industry allowed me to start working on projects that began to create music videos; it was really from there that I realized my innate passion for film and with that, I was able to tie the two together”.
Working with Booth and Zinerman, Harewood persuaded Cornegy to allow Harewood to co-direct a tv commercial/promo for his campaign. From there he has helped Assemblymember Tremaine Wright (D-Bedford-Stuyvesant, Northern Crown Heights) and other political leaders in the Bedford Stuyvesant area.
When asked how he thought the “VIDA 45” film would influence the community, Harewood stated that he hoped it would help people get more involved not only with politics but with the organization specifically. “I remember when I was younger, my dad was involved in the National Action Democratic Club (NADC) and so when I saw that as a young teen I wanted to do the same. I got involved with VIDA when I moved back to New York City when Mr. Al Vann (founder) was there and it has helped me tremendously; not only with my career but with the knowledge I have about the political system which in turn made me want to vote and want to stay involved. That’s what I want for them”.
Harewood states the film isn’t complete yet as they are looking for more funding to extend past the 30 minutes. He hopes to get more features and interviews in the future.
The film will show tomorrow at 6 p.m., as part of the film festival at the Billie Holiday Theater in Restoration Plaza, 1368 Fulton Street in Bed Stuyvesant.
