FOLLOW ME HOME Logline In a powerful celebration of art, history, music and brotherhood, four artists of color and a woman with a haunting secret embark on a cross-country pilgrimage through a desert landscape steeped in magic, mystery and danger. Short Synopsis Four Los Angeles street artists hatch a plan to cover the White House with vibrantly painted murals in Follow Me Home, a rebellious fable infused with the traditions of Native, African and Latino culture. Joined by a woman with a haunting secret, they set off on an impetuous joyride across a desert landscape steeped in magic, mystery and danger. A powerful celebration of art, history, music and community, Follow Me Home challenges long-held beliefs about race and identity in America, adding an important voice to today’s racial reckoning. Long Synopsis A cross-country joyride becomes a transformative spiritual journey for five lost souls in Follow Me Home, a bold and original reevaluation of race and class in America from writer and director Peter Bratt (La Mission). Chicano cousins Tudee (Jesse Borrego) and Abel (Benjamin Bratt), and their fellow street artists, Native American Freddy (Steve Reevis) and African American Kaz (Calvin Levels), load up their van with paint and supplies, then set out for Washington, D.C. Their mission: to tell their story by covering the White House with vivid images of their American history. Along the way they are joined by Evey (Oscar® nominee Alfre Woodard), a quiet woman carrying a tragic burden. Each of the travelers harbors a secret longing that will reveal itself in the vast Southwestern desert, threatening to end their quest almost before it starts. Forced to face hostile locals and their own worst fears, a spiritual connection allows voices from the past to bleed into the now as they battle a familiar adversary. Challenging long-held beliefs about race, gender, and identity in America, Follow Me Home is a powerful celebration of art, history, music and community that resonates even more deeply in the context of today’s racial reckoning. Originally debuted at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival, where it was one of only 18 films selected to screen in competition, Follow Me Home will be available for streaming without charge at www.followmehomethemovie.com from October 22nd through November 4th with a series of curated talkbacks to follow. Follow Me Home is written and directed by Peter Bratt (La Mission, Dolores). The film stars Alfre Woodard (Clemency, Captain America: Civil War), Benjamin Bratt (La Mission, Dr. Strange), Jesse Borrego (Phoenix, Oregon; Blood In, Blood Out), Steve Reevis (Fargo, Dances With Wolves), Calvin Levels (Ragtime, “The Atlanta Child Murders”) and Salma Hayek (Frida, Desperado). It is produced by Peter Bratt, Benjamin Bratt, Alan Renshaw (The Spirit of ’76) and Irene Romero. The director of photography is Garett Griffin (This Old Cub, “Christmas Icetastrophe”). Production designer is Katterina Keith (Missing in America, Control). Costume design is by Taryn Walsh (Little Women, “SMILF”). The film is edited by Robert Grahamjones (What Dreams May Come, The Unbearable Lightness of Being). Music is by Roy Finch (Wake, Bram Stoker’s Dracula), Cyril Neville (The Neville Brothers) and Speech (Arrested Development). Executive producers are Bonnie Duran, Eduardo Duran (The Red Valentine), Jennifer Newell-Easton (The Doe Boy) and Gary Rhine (Your Humble Serpent, Wiping the Tears of Seven Generations). Co-executive producer and sound designer is Bob Edwards (Fruitvale Station, Beasts of the Southern Wild). CRITICAL PRAISE FOR FOLLOW ME HOME “Follow Me Home is a work of genius. It is a work that explores issues of societal and planetary survival: the meaning of integrity, the courage required by love and the necessity of respect.” — Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize and American Book Award-winning author “Follow Me Home is a wonderful gift… It is a breathtaking journey to the present, the past, and toward the future… To whatever extent ‘American’ fits into or collides with your identity, you must see this film.” — Angela Davis, teacher, activist, author “Follow Me Home is one of the most important films of the ’90s. At once magical realist ethnic road movie and postcolonial theoretical Western, it is also a ferociously funny comedy and poignant allegorical commentary on American history and representation.” — Thyrza Goodeve, contributing writer, Artforum, The Village Voice “Hilarious, raging, and always moving across boundaries as unnatural and as lethal as they are commonplace in today’s racist and homophobic America, this is an incredible movie: The first American film emerging direct from the heart and the headset of the New American Majority.” — June Jordan, award-winning African-American poet, essayist and political activist “Follow Me Home is one of the most inspired movies I have seen in years. This movie made me laugh, weep and learn. I came into the theater curious and left exhilarated. There have been many successful films of late about the state of our youth, but no one has managed to explore the extreme common ground as the Bratt brothers do in this film.” — Tom Hayden, Former California State Senator “There will be few films as daring as Follow Me Home hitting movie theaters this year ... Bratt has directed a profoundly serious and lyrical film… call it hip-hop magical realism.” — Gary Dauphin, Vibe magazine “This is a film for reflection, discussion and revelation. Do not miss it.” — Dr. Claudia Highbaugh, Chaplain, Harvard Divinity School ABOUT THE PRODUCTION In January 1996, Follow Me Home made its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, one of only 18 out of more than 500 submissions that were selected for the US Dramatic Competition. The film, a modern-day fable about four muralists who set off on a cross-country trip, won the Audience Awards at the San Francisco International Festival and Seattle International Film Festival, and went on to receive special recognition for excellence in filmmaking from the National Board of Review. The feature debut from then-aspiring writer, director and producer Peter Bratt, Follow Me Home was met with popular and critical acclaim at its sold-out Sundance screenings. Additional showings were needed to accommodate audience demand. With little experience, less money, few contacts and a limited time to shoot, Bratt had arrived at the apex of American independent film. But when the festival was over, the film still had not found a buyer. “I think it polarized audiences,” says Peter. “People either absolutely flipped for the movie or they absolutely hated it.” Moved by the film’s Afro-Indigenous themes, Henri Norris — an African-American woman and attorney — approached Peter, proposing they self-distribute the film. And together, they did just that, hand carrying the film to cities across the country in search of an audience for this entertaining, soulful story that also challenged America’s entrenched racism, sexism and dysfunctional behavior. “In every city we opened we would hold Q&A sessions after the screenings and hand out flyers, trying to spread the word. And we found that it resonated with people of color on a very deep level.” Despite the positive reception from viewers, Follow Me Home did not find a place in mainstream Hollywood and was, for the most part, shelved. Bratt has gone on to make two successful films (both of which also premiered at Sundance), the multi-award-winning 2009 drama La Mission, and the Peabody award-winning 2017 documentary feature Dolores. For the past 25 years, Follow Me Home has existed mostly as a memory, even for its creator. The Time Is Right “Until recently I hadn’t seen the film for about 20 years,” Peter says. “Then George Floyd was murdered. We started getting phone calls, emails and texts from people saying, ‘You have to re- release Follow Me Home. It’s about what’s happening right now.’ I pulled out a VHS copy and re- watched it, seeing it in a new light because of where we are at this particular moment in time.” But re-releasing it for today’s market would require expensive adjustments to the film’s format. “We shot on 35 millimeter and it existed in that technology only,” says Peter. “We figured it would cost six figures to digitize, re-mix, re-colorize and make it available for streaming. And although a cool idea, it just wasn’t financially feasible.” And then an unexpected benefactor turned up. “A gentleman who remembered the film from long ago contacted me to say he wanted to be part of the current conversation about race in America. He believed that Follow Me Home could help facilitate that. He offered to introduce me to some friends who were also interested. That was the first step. From there, a coalition of supporters and donors was formed to make the funds available, generated by a sincere desire to use the film as a springboard into a nationwide dialogue on the issues. That was about mid-August of this year.” Those contributions enabled the filmmakers to re-format Follow Me Home. Most of the benefactors, including the one who started the ball rolling, are White, notes Peter. “Many of them confessed that until recently they hadn’t given much thought to these issues,” he says. “There are a lot of mixed feelings around this subject and some understandable discomfort. But I think we’re witnessing a shift in the national narrative and filmmakers of color are part of that shift. That’s partly why I think people started calling for the film’s re-release. It questions the ultimate American monument, the White House, and gives credence to the histories, stories and experiences of our people. People of color.” An Offer He Couldn’t Refuse The story behind Follow Me Home begins shortly after Peter dropped out of the graduate film program at NYU and returned to his San Francisco home.