The life and career of groundbreaking civil rights attorney Ben Crump will be the subject of a new documentary feature from Peabody Award winning producer Kenya Barris, Oscar and Emmy Award winning documentary producer Roger Ross Williams and director Nadia Hallgren, a double Emmy nominee for her work on the Michelle Obama documentary Becoming.
The yet-to-be-titled documentary feature will pull back the curtain on an array of Crump’s past and current cases by examining the distinct nature of his work, his impact on American civil rights and racial justice, and the toll such work takes on him and his family. Considered a trailblazer and maverick of his field, Crump first gained recognition while representing the family of Trayvon Martin and is currently working with the families of Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and George Floyd.
Who is Benjamin Crump?
Through a steadfast dedication to justice and service, renowned civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump has established himself as one of the nation’s foremost lawyers and advocates for social justice, earning the nickname “Black America’s Attorney General”. His legal acumen has ensured that those marginalized in American society are protected by their nation’s contract with its constituency. He is the founder and principal owner of Ben Crump Law.
We are on a journey to justice.
Civil Rights Attorney Benjamin Crump is leading the charge. With the heartbreaking murders of unarmed black citizens, America’s conversation about racial equity has become a global movement. At the heartbeat of that movement are the families seeking justice through Attorney Benjamin Crump. He represents the families of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, Tamir Rice, Nakia Jones, Danny Ray Thomas and Stephon Clark, as well as the residents of Flint, Michigan.
Traditional media was a powerful ally in the 1960s when America watched in outrage as police attack dogs and high-pressure water hoses were turned on children and adult protestors in Alabama. With a similar understanding of the interplay between civil rights and the social media landscape today, Crump fights in the courtroom and in the court of public opinion.
A renaissance man and media influencer, he is also a producer, documentarian, and author. His production company Brooklyn Media, curates scripted narrative content for film, TV and digital media, with a focus on stories of injustice, inequality, and civil rights. Crump sees this as one of the most deliberate ways to affect how juries see people of color.
Inspired by the legacy of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Crump’s strategic selection of both cases and creative content is embedded in a singular mission — to “shock the conscience” of the American people.
Director Nadia Hallgren is an award-winning filmmaker and cinematographer from The Bronx, New York. She directed the Emmy Award-nominated documentary Becoming (2020) and received nominations for Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program and Outstanding Cinematography for a Nonfiction Program. In 2019, her documentary short, After Maria, was shortlisted for an Academy Award. Hallgren won the Special Jury prize at SXSW in 2018 for her independent documentary series She’s The Ticket. Her documentary short Gavin Grimm Vs. won a Webby Award. Her work in cinematography includes the Sundance award-winners Motherland (2017) and Trapped (2016) and Academy Award-nominated and Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winner Trouble the Water (2008).