Alex Winter’s ‘The YouTube Effect’ Pairs With Short Film On Court Watching Movement For Cinematic Double Header
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EXCLUSIVE: Moviegoers who catch Alex Winter’s new documentary The YouTube Effect can expect a cinematic bonus: We can reveal the film is preceded by a short documentary for the National Courtwatch Network narrated by Fiona Apple, with original music by the singer-songwriter.
The four-and-a-half minute long short, which also features narration from actor Jesse Williams and Dr. Carmen Johnson of Courtwatch PG, examines a growing movement to bring accountability to the judicial system by training court watchers to observe judicial proceedings “and report their findings to the public.”
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The movement picked up steam during the pandemic when many court proceedings were made available online, allowing Courtwatch volunteers around the country to monitor arraignments, bond hearings and other judicial matters that might otherwise go unwitnessed by members of the public.
“This principle of courts open to the public was inscribed in the Constitution by the nation’s founders who themselves suffered injustice behind closed doors during British rule,” the narration notes. The court watch movement “seeks to train a legion of volunteers to attend hearings and to learn the language and process of court so that they can take notes, amplify the injustices they witness and hold power accountable.”
Apple herself has become an active court watcher.
“I am filled with hope, to imagine film-goers across the nation, sitting at attention in darkened theaters, being introduced to the Court Watching community,” Apple said in a statement provided exclusively to Deadline. “People go to the movies to be entertained, of course—but they also go to learn, to be moved, and to step back out into the world, a little bit changed. My hope is that, in each audience waiting to be entertained, there will be a few who will see this introduction and feel what every court watcher once did—first, that spark of fury at the injustice, and then, that wonderful resolve: They will think, ‘This makes sense. This is important. This is what caring for each other looks like. AND this is something I CAN DO!’”
Winter, The YouTube Effect director, told Deadline, “The lack of equal justice in courts is a systemic problem in this country. The Court Watchers is an important short film that chronicles Fiona Apple and other regular citizens who have found a way to fight injustice in the courts. I’m proud to be able to show the film in front of our documentary and to give this urgent, little-known avenue for activism more exposure.”
The YouTube Effect producer Gale Anne Hurd commented, “It’s absolutely essential that concerned citizens be aware of what they can do to keep our justice system accountable. This powerful short film highlights the importance of Court Watchers.”
Drafthouse Films is releasing The YouTube Effect in Alamo Drafthouse Cinemas today, with a nationwide expansion happening next Friday. Locations showing the film include Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C., Austin, Chicago and San Francisco.
The feature documentary from Winter (Bill & Ted Franchise, Showbiz Kids, The Panama Papers, Zappa), “explores the ascension and acceleration of YouTube, a video-sharing website that started with humble origins and has gone on to change how we experience the world,” according to a release. “With exclusive access to some of YouTube’s biggest stars, the film presents an eye-opening and troubling look at the platform now so powerfully embedded in our lives.”
The YouTube Effect premiered at the 2022 Tribeca Festival and went on to screen at CPH:DOX in Copenhagen, the Montclair Film Festival, and Philadelphia International Film Festival, among others.
“The Internet is fundamentally surreal. And if in doubt, just take a look at YouTube, the greatest media platform and magic mirror in the history of the world. In a provocative and wildly entertaining high-speed essay, tech documentarist Alex Winter takes a hard look not just at YouTube, but at how the internet has changed the way we live and think since the video platform launched,” CPH:DOX programmers noted. “…Winter’s film… takes an intelligent deep dive down a rabbit hole of K-pop, Justin Bieber, revolutions in the Middle East, radicalization, cat videos and organized misinformation. It’s a wild ride.”
Producers of The YouTube Effect include Winter (Trouper Productions), Gale Anne Hurd (Valhalla Entertainment, Mankiller, The Terminator Trilogy and The Walking Dead), and Glen Zipper (Zipper Bros. Films, Undefeated, Challenger: Final Flight, What’s My Name: Muhammad Ali, Zappa). Executive Producers include Michael Cho, Mimi Rode and Tim Lee of Olive Hill Media, Michael Y. Chow and Sue Turley of XRM Media, Kevin Lin of Metatheory and Ian Orefice, Rebecca Teitel and Mike Beck for TIME Studios.
The Court Watchers short, meanwhile, features storyboarding and animation by Fluorfilms, illustration by Sebastián Franchini, and sound design and mixing by Flavorlab. It is produced by MediaTank Productions, Variant Strategies, and Zealo.us.
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