Film-maker Laura Waters Hinson explores the homeless world of Washington D.C. in her documentary short STREET REPORTER, seen through the eyes of Sheila White, a photographer determined to keep off the streets herself.
Film And TV Now spoke with the film-maker about the short.
FILM AND TV NOW: Homelessness is a serious issue with the effect of the pandemic. When did you become aware of Sheila’s story?
LAURA WATERS HINSON: As a Professor of Film at American University, I direct the Community Voice Lab, which produces documentary films that capture the voices of community storytellers too often unseen and unheard.
The creative ethos of Community Voice is that of collaboration, rather than extraction, in which our filmmakers and local storytellers work together to tell stories of hope, resilience and determination for the common good.
I have also been a resident of the District of Columbia for nearly two decades, and witnessed the homelessness crisis expand around me as the city experienced unprecedented levels of development in a very short period. The pandemic only exacerbated these issues.
Through the Community Voice Lab, I partnered with Producer Bryan Bello, a PhD candidate in the School of Communication at American University with a passion for citizen journalism. Bryan co-founded the nation’s first homeless film-making cooperative at Street Sense Media of which Sheila White was a member.
Street Reporter began as a “meta” story: our team of documentary filmmakers followed a team of journalist-filmmakers following the story of “tent city” in DC. After months of filming with the reporting team, I realized that Sheila was our true protagonist as she on a powerful journey to achieve her dream of becoming a photojournalist while struggling to get out of a homeless shelter.
FTVN: The film focuses on the underbelly of Washington D.C, very much a cultural and political centre. How do local officials view the plight of homelessness overall?
LWH: Homelessness is a huge issue in DC. In fact, our mayor has made it a major policy priority, and as a result of investment in housing related solutions, the overall number of people experiencing homelessness in D.C. decreased nearly 14% since last year and is nearly half of what it was six years ago.
FTVN: Tell us about your production team.
LWH: As director and producer, I generated the idea for the film and crafted its vision in collaboration with Sheila and the reporting team. My bio is included here:
Producer Bryan Bello first and foremost contributed access to the characters. As founder of the Street Sense Filmmakers Co-Op, he served as the ambassador between our film team and the Street Sense reporters. He was responsible for managing the Street Sense participants and locations, and also served as a camera operator on three occasions when our primary cinematographer was unavailable.
Sheila White and Reginald Black are acknowledged as impact producers due to their guidance and expertise within the homeless population in DC, as well as their contributions in reporting on the DC encampment crisis. They have provided original video to the film while also, as homeless reporters, serving as the focus of the film.
An award-winning film-maker and Assistant Professor of Film at American University, Laura Waters Hinson‘s films have screened at the U.S. Congress, United Nations, Smithsonian National Gallery of Art and premiered globally at festivals with broadcasts on PBS, WORLD, ShortsTV and Curiosity Stream.
Laura won the Gold Medal for Best Documentary at the 2008 Student Academy Awards for As We Forgive, narrated by Mia Farrow. In 2019, she served as the director’s shadow on the final season of Showtime’s Homeland. She also wrote and directed Moving Violation, winning Best Narrative Short at the DC Independent Film Festival.
Her new documentary, Street Reporter, won Best Short Documentary at the 2022 Annapolis Film Festival, the Social Impact Media Award and the Audience Award at Austin Film Festival. Her current feature is Project Home, a documentary about a group of housing advocates on a mission to prove 3D printed houses can solve the global housing crisis.
FTVN: How long did it take to shoot and how much footage did you amass in production?
LWH: Production began in Fall of 2019 and concluded in the summer of 2021. The pandemic definitely slowed our process, and yet, in the end, it was a blessing to have that extra time in that the story unfolded in unexpected ways. I can’t say how much footage we amassed exactly, but it was a lot! There were so many powerful stories that we weren’t able to include.
FTVN: We learn that Street Sense is part of a global network of homeless publications designed to help homeless people get income by selling hard copies on the street. Tell us a bit more about this network and how can people get involved in their respective countries?
LWH: The International Network of Street Papers (INSP) is a non-profit dedicated to tackling poverty and homelessness globally. They accomplish this by empowering people and street paper enterprises to tackle these issues locally.
Visit https://www.insp.ngo/ to learn more and find out if you have a local street paper that you could support.
FTVN: Are there plans to show this short documentary to those up on Capitol Hill?
LWH: While the film has screened several times in DC, we have not had a Congressional screening, although we’d love to!
FTVN: Have you shown the film to the homeless community in D.C?
LWH: Yes, the film is regularly shown by Street Sense Media in its advocacy work within the homeless community in DC.
FTVN: What issues and themes are you keen to explore in future work? Also, would you be keen to expand on this short and do an expanded feature-length documentary which highlights the issues on a bigger canvas?
LWH: I just finished a new feature documentary called PROJECT HOME about 3D printed houses which explores how this new technology might be able to address the global housing crisis.
That film is premiering in October at the Heartland Film Festival in Indianapolis. After focusing on a personal story related to homelessness in Street Reporter, I was eager to study solutions that could impact peoples’ lives on a larger scale, which fueled my interest in the 3D printed housing topic.
FTVN: Who and what are your key cinematic influences?
LWH: I have been particularly impacted by the character-based documentary film work of Sean and Andrea Fine, Skye Fitzgerald and Errol Morris.
FTVN: What are your immediate and long-term plans for the short?
LWH: I am working with Street Sense Media and my graduate students at American University on an outreach and education campaign to distribute the film for free to universities and local housing institutions to help spark conversations about local housing solutions.
To learn more about hosting a screening, please visit: www.streetreporterfilm.com
FTVN: How has the festival circuit helped your film?
LWH: The film has screened at fourteen film festivals so far, and won several jury and audience awards, which has really expanded our audience. We would love to continue to show at festivals throughout 2022-2023 while also reaching students and policy leaders via our outreach campaign.
FTVN: Finally, what are you most proud of about this documentary?
LWH: I am so proud of Sheila and her dedication to reaching her dreams despite the extreme challenges of homelessness that she faced. I am thankful that I was able to witness and document her accomplishments and put them into a documentary that she is proud to show the world.
Sheila often accompanies me at festivals and screenings, and regularly uses the film in her own advocacy work. I am proud that she feels well represented by the film’s portrayal of her life.
