A Documentary About Labor, Solidarity, and Collective Action
I’m thrilled to announce that 8 Above will handle the theatrical release of Who Moves America, a powerful new documentary about the UPS Teamsters’ 2023 contract fight, from Emmy Award–nominated filmmaker Yael Bridge. It opens September 9 at New York’s IFC Center and September 24 in Los Angeles, before expanding nationwide.
Who Moves America comes at a critical time in our nation’s history – where working people have been marginalized – and unions have been beaten down by decades of questionable tactics and motivations. This film demonstrates the difficulties facing working people every day and how they can come together and organize for a better future. But the film doesn’t lecture, it lets you into the lives of the union members and through individuals illustrates the struggles our country is facing. It is not a left or right problem – it is a human problem. With director Yael Bridge’s deft directorial hand Who Moves America accomplishes this with humanity, humor and hope – which is so needed today.
A Collaboration Years in the Making
I’ve been a longtime fan of Yael Bridge’s work since I saw her feature directorial debut, The Big Scary “S” Word, an ambitious yet accessible exploration of the history and resurgence of socialism in the United States. In it, Yael takes on enormous political and economic ideas while grounding them in the lives of ordinary people. That approach, a hallmark of her work, makes even the most complex subject matter feel immediate, human, and deeply engaging.
I first met Yael through the Documentary Producers Alliance (DPA), where she served as President and now sits on the board. Not long after we were introduced, I approached her with an idea I had been carrying for years: we should make a film about worker cooperatives. We have not started that project yet, but the conversation revealed a shared interest in economic systems, workers, and the power of documentary to change the world. That shared interest now comes full circle with 8 Above handling the theatrical release for her new film Who Moves America with her producing partners Yoni Golijov, Jeremy Flood and Mars Verrone, EPd by Steven Bognar, Carrie Lozano and Astra Taylor. I could not be more excited that this is the film that is bringing us together.
“Jon and I first connected years ago over our love of worker-owned co-ops, so it is especially meaningful to officially collaborate with him on a film about workers. Jon’s love of documentaries and belief in its power to shape our world is contagious. It is that shared belief that makes this collaboration so intuitive.”
— Yael Bridge
I also love that Yael and Yoni are thinking about a company to focus on documentaries about labor in the United States. They will be using this release to start the process of creating long term audience, press and organizational connections for these projects. Audience development can be a long process so if you can bring an audience along for multiple projects that they care about – that is a model for success.
So, Who Moves America?
As the world’s largest package delivery company, UPS moves millions of packages across more than 200 countries and territories each day – and its workforce holds the power to bring that machine to a halt. Who Moves America follows a UPS driver in California casting his first strike vote, a Teamster in New York who walked the picket line during the historic 1997 strike, and a warehouse worker in Kentucky balancing night shifts with community college, weighing whether she can afford to say no, as well as access to the General President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Sean O’Brien. As they and their co-workers organize, argue, and campaign across the country, the film builds toward a single, high-stakes vote: accept the deal, or risk everything for a strike that could reshape the American economy. Through intimate access and on-the-ground storytelling, Who Moves America reveals the human stories behind the single largest collective bargaining agreement in North America and explores the power and complexity of collective action in modern America.
Humanity, Humor, and Hope
What I love most about Who Moves America is that it doesn’t reduce organizing to a clean, inevitable story of victory.
The workers disagree with one another. They have different levels of security and different calculations about what they can afford to risk. They’re weighing their jobs, families, education, and bills against the possibility that standing together could either improve their lives or put everything they have in jeopardy.
Yael brings us into their lives without turning them into symbols. She illustrates the challenges working people face every day while finding humanity, humor, and hope in a critical issue of our time.
A Film Made to Be Seen Together
Who Moves America tells the story of what people can accomplish when they come together. It deserves to be seen together, too. Seeing it in a theater gives audiences the chance to consider the work that sustains their everyday lives, to discuss the future of labor in America, and to reflect on what solidarity really requires.
We’ve all watched a UPS truck come down our street or waited for a package to arrive. Most of us rarely stop to think about the enormous human network behind that delivery. This film makes those workers visible and asks a larger question: when individuals within a vast system recognize their shared power, what becomes possible?
“One thing I know in my bones is that some things can only be accomplished together, and that is something the Teamsters in the film embodied every day.”
— Yael Bridge
Building Extraordinary Momentum
The film arrives in theaters following a remarkable festival run.
It premiered to sold-out audiences at True/False Film Fest, including a packed 1,200-seat screening at the historic Missouri Theatre that ended in a three-minute standing ovation. Screenings at DOC NYC Selects and SFFILM also sold out within 48 hours, prompting both festivals to add shows.
The film has found equally enthusiastic support inside the labor movement. It was featured at the Labor Notes Conference, attended by more than 4,000 union activists, including Teamsters from across the country, and its first-look trailer was later unveiled to roughly 5,000 attendees at the International Brotherhood of Teamsters convention. The film will also play at the upcoming Socialism Conference.
That response speaks to the film’s ability to connect with people deeply involved in the labor movement and with audiences encountering these issues for the first time.
The Team Behind the Film
Who Moves America is directed by Yael Bridge and produced by Yael Bridge, Jeremy Flood, Mars Verrone, and Academy Award–nominated producer Yoni Golijov. It is executive produced by Academy Award winner Steven Bognar, Carrie Lozano, and Astra Taylor, with Jun Stinson Yamagishi serving as Supervising Producer. The film is a co-production of Sidereal Time LLC and Independent Television Service (ITVS), with funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
We are proud to work alongside this exceptional team to bring the film to audiences around the country.
Who Moves America opens September 9 at New York’s IFC Center and September 24 in Los Angeles, before expanding nationwide.https://jonreiss.substack.com/p/who-moves-america-a-new-theatrical