A local theater is hosting a screening Thursday, Jan. 17, of an Arizona-made documentary that challenges viewers to confront discrimination and recognize the need for communities to come together and embrace similarities.
“You Racist, Sexist, Bigot” is a crowdfunded documentary shot in Arizona by filmmakers Pita Juarez and Matty Steinkamp. Despite the movie’s Arizona roots, the award-winning film features American stories, including that of a young man from Ferguson, Missouri, and an undocumented transgender woman living in a border town.
“Pita and I started working on the film almost immediately following the 2016 election,” Steinkamp told the Star. “We had both been talking about doing some type of film that really focuses on the stories of our communities and we saw during that time that there was a lot of prejudices being put on people of color and people of marginalized communities and intersectional identities, and we really wanted to go out there and paint the more honest picture.”
Steinkamp said they set out to share the “beautiful” side of Arizona and its culture and communities by giving the microphone to their storytellers.
“We wanted to get out of the way of the conversation and let them tell their stories,” Steinkamp said. “(We had) as many different identities that we could present in this hour-long documentary that could tell the story of how beautiful Arizona is and how much understanding needs to happen so that we can come together.”
The film has screened at film festivals across the country and the community conversation has been different at each location.
“In Atlanta, the main focus was on African American communities. When we did the film festival in Phoenix, the conversation went more towards immigration because we’re so much closer to the border,” Juarez said. “I think that as we keep showcasing the movie in different places, we’re allowing a different type of conversation depending on the issues of that state.”
Juarez and Steinkamp are hopeful that seeing the film will inspire people to have honest and uncomfortable conversations and give others the opportunity to share their own stories.
“Wanting to have public discussions is a healing tool in society right now. We want to be a part of that,” Steinkamp said.
The film screening at The Loft will followed by a Q&A with Juarez and Steinkamp.
