Sue Hagedorn accepting LIIFE Humanitarian Award
Last week, Deputized, the new documentary film about the 2008 hate crime killing of Ecuadorian immigrant and Patchogue resident Marcelo Lucero, won the Humanitarian Award at the Long Island International Film Expo. I was on a panel answering questions after the film was shown. I watched the film again prior to speaking, and I was surprised to see that it was a different version.
The original film is almost an hour and a half long and it is a very complete examination of Long Island’s most notorious hate crime. However, a number of groups that have been interested in showing the film have been put off by its length. Folks have told me that they are afraid to show the film because it would take up their entire meeting time and not allow for discussion afterwards. No one who has seen the original version thinks it drags, rather it is just a matter of logistics.
The new version is a little under an hour long. The producers cut it so that it can be shown on Public TV. My understanding is that it will be aired on WLIW here on Long Island in September or October, and that it will also be shown on other PBS stations. Hundreds of thousands of people will now get to see the story.
The new cut loses nothing in narrative drive. It is still an excellent exploration of the ways in which anti-immigrant political rhetoric created a climate of fear for immigrants and deputized young men to go out and attack them. Some of the atmosphere of the original is lost, but on the other hand, this is a more accessible version of the story for the general public.
Because the producers had to cut the film for the sake of TV, this new version of the film is now available for groups to use for their meetings or at public showings. If you are interested in showing the film, go to the film’s Facebook page and leave a message.
