The push to let the public know about “red white and blue” before the election

With abortion on the ballot in several states in Tuesday's elections, writer-director Nazrin Choudhury's Oscar-nominated short Red, white and blue about a single mother trying to access an abortion seems more relevant than ever. The British-born multi-hyphenate doesn't always see it that way.

“The upcoming election, in which abortion is such an important topic, means that people are talking about this topic as very timely. “It was so timely.” Unfortunately, it seems timeless to me,” he says The Hollywood journalist.

“It seems like we still need to tell this story. I keep saying, 'Oh, let's try to make my story redundant and we don't have to make movies like this,'” he continues. “But we need to tell the stories of ordinary human beings and especially Americans.”

Red, white and blue premiered for free on YouTube this week, Majic Ink Productions and Level Forward announced Monday. “We are getting tremendous response and feedback,” explains Choudhury.

The film, starring Brittany Snow and Juliet Donenfold and produced by Samantha Bee, follows a young single mother from Arkansas, played by Snow, who is forced to cross state lines to access an abortion.

The film has been strategically shown across the country since its Oscar nomination in 2024, according to a release, with the goal of reaching voters of all political stripes. Getting the film out to the world before Election Day required a village of professionals from film, public relations and more to come together to make it happen.

“Red white and blue” poster.

Courtesy of Majic Ink Productions

On Wednesday, University of Pennsylvania students and faculty participated in a student-led national screening and moderated discussion event featuring Choudhury, LaTosha Brown of Black Voters Matter, professors Melissa Murray and Kate Shaw of Crooked Media Strict control podcasts and more.

“This event was long planned and deeply meaningful because I have teenagers who will inherit this legacy,” says the writer and director, explaining that it meant so much to be “in community” with UPenn and NYU students via a live stream there.

“I think it's really important because this is the generation that will inherit all our mistakes. I think we need to break the cycle because what happens is we always leave it to them. They have to deal with the messes of their elders,” he explains.

For Choudhury, making this film was important and deeply personal. She explains that she made the film alone, asking her children if she could dip into the college savings she had accumulated. The director says the team got it Red, white and blue to church communities in places like Arizona and Wisconsin. As Choudhury describes it, “Places where you think people would be reluctant to have this conversation,” however, he has found that people are not reluctant to open a dialogue about abortion.

“Our main goal has just been to try to figure out which communities to bring in to do these benefit screenings, and then yes, into this final push where our future as women will be decided at the ballot box,” Choudhury begins.

“When the Vice President, Kamala Harris, says women are bleeding… as someone who was bleeding too, but luckily not in a parking lot, I was in a hospital getting treated,” he continues. “I just wanted to make sure that when we made this movie, it was with the utmost power and power and urgency.”

The short film will be streamed on YouTube during election week. Each viewing of the film generates a donation to the film's Purple Parlor Fund, which benefits nonpartisan organizations focused on reproductive rights, justice and the film's impact campaign.

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