EXCLUSIVE: Oscar winnerMichael Mooreis in awe of the endeavor behind anthology filmFrom Ground Zero.
It is a brilliant work of art.
I tell people, do not avoid this film.
Michael Moore, “From Ground Zero"Getty/Everett Collection
If your kids are mature and of a certain age, take them to it.
This isnt just the blood and gore you witness on cable news.
This film is the response of people who are trying to stay alive while being bombarded and shot at.
On many levels, I dont have a choice.
Moore, Hollywoods arch rabble-rouser, is as willing as ever to stick his neck out for his beliefs.
He and the projects he backs are rarely far from someones ire.
What does Moore make of their campaign against the film?
I feel sorry for them.
They obviously dont know whats going on.
Moore conversely believes that the shadow of October 7 hangs over the whole film.
He has said as much in TV appearances after the latest violence erupted.
Doing so comes with risks.
But also support in unexpected places.
I was kind of bracing myself.
I ask if that agent would be Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, who still reps Moore.
I might be talking about someone with a name that sounds like that, he chuckles.
Moores ties to the Middle East region run deeper than most non-Arab and non-Jewish westerners.
It bothered me so deeply.
I bring our discussion back toFrom Ground Zeroand a question that is looming large over contemporary U.S. distribution.
Why are so many distributors shying away from acclaimed films with a political or social message.
Oscar nominee and fellow Palestine-themed docNo Other Landremains without a distributor.
It took a Palestinian-owned indie Watermelon Pictures to step up to distributeFrom Ground Zerodomestically.
The film launched in a limited release earlier this month.
There are certain topics most buyers cant countenance, it seems.
The shun extends beyond films about Palestine, however.
Meanwhile, Deadline has anecdotally heard stories about investors backing out of upcoming social impact films.
The shifting political landscape in America is part of the issue.
Buyer fears of not having streamer deals re-upped is another, one industry vet posits to me.
I ask Moore if there is a crisis of self-censorship in the U.S. film sector?
He also offered his services as an exec producer onNo Other Land.
He continues: Is there a campaign to stop all this?
Of course there is.
How many people like me do you see on CNN?
Does he have another firework up his sleeve as the second Trump term gets underway?
Moore is well aware of the dangers his style of documentary-making present.
Those risks could be even greater in Trumps America.
When youre me, you have to see to it youre alive to make the film.
I am working quietly on it with my producers.
We dont want to get shut down so Im not going to say much more.
But as of now, were moving forward.
One of Moores most potent filmmaking strengths has been the ability to combine playfulness with earnest seriousness.
