Bridging Divides Through Story
The Clapham Group and MORE Productions have partnered with writer and director Erik Bork to tell a story that bridges political divides.
“My fondest hope would be that this film would have an impact culturally in the sense that enough people would see it, talk about it, and feel that it’s opening up a conversation about polarization that maybe isn’t happening now.”
At Clapham, we intentionally work across right-left political divides. This year, we have embraced the goal of pursuing common ground for the common good. That is why we are investing in stories that also uncover common ground for the common good. Stories that seek to bring people together, bridge our differences, and even uncover common ground. We are excited to share more about a film releasing this year that is doing exactly that.
MORE Productions has been working with Emmy award-winning writer, director, and producer Erik Bork on a scripted feature-length film exploring romance across political divides. The film–with the temporary working title of Coming Together– navigates political polarization in ways we haven’t seen before, as most bridge-building films have been documentaries. The movie is politically engaging yet enlightening with its romance and comedic elements.
Clapham Senior Associate Juliet Vedral had a conversation with writer and director Erik Bork, and associate producers Mark Rodgers, Principal of Clapham Group, and Mike McCurry, Former Press Secretary to President Bill Clinton.
In this interview (lightly-edited for clarity), Erik and the team discuss their goals for the film: to spark positive conversations and promote understanding and dialogue across political divides. Associate producers Mark and Mike also provide a unique perspective on the film’s bridging nature, as their political backgrounds hail from different sides of the aisle.
To make the hopes of the film a reality, the project is currently seeking funds to complete post-production tasks and promote the film. They are using the Wefunder platform for crowdfunding and also accept tax-deductible donations through a fiscal sponsor. The hope is to distribute the film widely, potentially through churches and bridge-building organizations. If you are interested in supporting the project, please click this link to access the Wefunder page. We invite you to join us!
Juliet Vedral (JV): Why don't we just take a minute for each of you to introduce yourselves? Erik, why don't you start?
Erik Bork (EB): My name is Erik Bork, and I'm the writer/director of Coming Together. I'm a screenwriter, best known for my work on the HBO Miniseries, Band of Brothers, and other projects with Tom Hanks. I am now delighted to be affiliated with MORE Productions and the Clapham Group as partners in moving forward with this production, finding distribution and getting it out to the world.
Mike McCurry (MM): I am Mike McCurry. I am probably better known for having been a White House Press Secretary for President Bill Clinton, but that was my first long-time career in politics and working on Capitol Hill. Then I switched to religion and started teaching at the local Methodist Seminary, Wesley Theological Seminary, and got a degree in theology. I've been able to combine two of my passions, religion and politics, and have worked in various ways on that. I've worked on a couple of film projects and have had a little bit of time working on how to promote and advance interesting stories. I think we've got a great opportunity with Coming Together to do that.
Mark Rodgers (MR): I am Mark Rodgers. I'm a seminary-school dropout! I am more recently the founder of the Clapham Group, a Social Impact Agency focused on building right-left partnerships around a shared sense of common cause for the common good. We’re named after William Wilberforce, who is in a sense the Patron Saint for a number of us. Prior to Clapham, I worked on the Hill for 16 years as the Chief of Staff to Senator Rick Santorum and also was in leadership working at the Senate Republican Conference as its Staff Director.
JV: The first question is for Erik. What is Coming Together about and why did you write it?
EB: The film is set in December 2020, right after the Biden-Trump presidential election that is being contested, and COVID is still going on, pre-vaccine. It follows a young single woman, Leah, who's lonely after a breakup living in a sublet house in Los Angeles. She meets a guy that she might be interested in dating, but it turns out he voted for Trump both times. Leah’s a very committed progressive, and that's a deal breaker for her, but she decides to give this guy a chance and see if she can have an impact on him politically. Tensions rise as he is debating attending the January 6th rally and the film ends on Inauguration Day.
It's a comedy with a serious topic, political polarization, but dealt with in a lighthearted way where you hopefully root for these two to figure it out and get together. One of them is more open to that than the other. Are they going to have to change somewhat in different ways in order to make this work? That's what the movie's about.
JV: Thank you for that, Erik. Could you share a little bit about what inspired you to create this movie?
EB: Political polarization to me is the issue in the way of other issues being solved. I'm more from the left myself, and when Trump was first elected to me, it was a wake-up call because I felt that it could not have happened without the polarization that has grown with 24-hour cable news and social media. There are more incentives these days to be polarized in politics.
But also at the same time, I'm a screenwriter and I am always looking for my next thing to write a movie about. I've written many scripts over the years and in recent years wanted to write something low-budget that I could produce independently and direct, this being my feature directing debut.
When I was thinking about romantic comedies, which is a genre I like, you're always looking for the things in the way of a romance, and it occurred to me one day the political climate in today's world, especially in the post-Trump era, is a big enough thing to be in the way of a romance. I thought that's something we haven't really seen before, and it was interesting to explore that topic.
Maybe in some small way this movie can become a discussion piece and an example of what happens when people from opposite sides try to really talk to each other and get past their political differences and explore whether a relationship is possible.
Over the time period of making the film, and getting involved with various individuals and nonprofits who are deeply concerned and doing work on this issue, I've started to realize how big of an issue political polarization is and how many great people are really making it their primary focus, and it has inspired me to care about the issue more. The movie wasn't originally about, ‘let's address this issue per se,’ but as it's gone on, I've become more convinced that I would like to be involved in something pointed toward solutions. Maybe this movie can be in some small way a part of that.
JV: Yeah, thank you. I love, ‘it's the issue in the way of other issues being solved.’ Why did you decide to set it in December 2020, versus another point of time?
EB: I knew I wanted it to be a “Trump versus no Trump” thing, not just Republican or Democrat, because Trump made political differences seem bigger, at least to people on the left, and the culture as a whole. The movie also follows the loneliness and mental health challenges brought about by COVID. People living alone or people living in these odd living situations where they never go out of the house to go to work, which is very much what's happening in the movie. So, the combination between loneliness and political tensions significantly impacted the ability to develop the relationship between Vincent and Leah.
But what's the most controversial time of the whole Trump experience? I would say after the election and his behavior after the election leading up to January 6th. If you're looking for the most extreme version of, “Oh my gosh, I can't believe you're on that side and I'm on this other side,” that's probably the place where that occurred.
I had a close friend during the Trump years who was a big Trump supporter, and I was on the other side. I really listened and learned a lot about why he particularly supported him, but I remember after the election denial, to me that was when things were at the most extreme, in terms of, “You're still on his side, really?”
So it made sense to have that moment be a climactic part late in the movie. In a screenplay, you're usually looking for almost a deal-breaker moment about three-quarters of the way through, when things are just at their worst. So if their problem is that he voted for Trump and she didn't, what would be the most extreme worst-case scenario of that thing getting in the way of the relationship? Well, January 6th would probably do it.
JV: Yeah, thank you so much for that, Erik. I'll direct this question now to Mark and to Mike. Why did you get involved with this project?
MM: I just found it really important to think about the polarization that exists and how people can overcome that as a society, and as a political system.. But to do it at a personal level, which is what the film is about, is really I think where the answer is. It's going to boil down to people individually accepting differences, listening to each other,and trying to understand the differences that exist. I think that the film really brings out that possibility because you've got two people who clearly are on different sides of the political spectrum and yet manage to find themselves in romance and find themselves in a relationship. I just found that very compelling.
Mark invited me to participate in this, and I enjoy any time I can work with him on a project. We are on opposite sides of the political spectrum and are friends. I find that kind of relationship to be healthy and good. That is an example of what I think this movie brings about. People who can work together, enjoy each other, and find companionship with each other because of the way in which they believe in a future that's better for everybody, regardless of political differences.
Juliet: Absolutely. Thank you, Mike.
MR: Beautifully said. I've got plenty of friends who are in the ‘never Trumper’ camp. I also have quite a few friends and family who support former President Trump. We work with intentionality at Clapham Group across a right-left divide. So in light of that, I think a story that allows those different archetypes to live in a way, in a narrative that's also lighthearted, was pretty irresistible to me.
Then in some ways, I'll be honest with you, the main character's name is Vincent. The other main character is Leah, and I see a lot of Vincent in me. I think, Mike, you about fell off your chair when I mentioned in the office here that I voted for Trump twice. I thought, wait a minute, there are people that I know, and their reasons for their vote are very complex and they don't fit a stereotype. I have a good friend group that went back and forth on this exact issue and we maintained a friendship of course, it's important. So I just felt this story packaged as it was as a comedy, allows this third wall or this third space to be a way to engage what can be a little personal sometimes, but allows you to engage it in a constructive way.
MM: Also, it is really fun to watch. It's very entertaining. That's part of what I think any successful project like this has to be. It's got to be fun to watch at the end of the day, and this certainly is.
JV: I'll let all three of you answer this in your own time, but what is your hope for the film, both in terms of distribution and impact?
EB: Well, as a filmmaker, I would love the film to be seen by as many people as possible, receive a positive reaction, and have a positive impact.
Also, as we've discussed, there are larger social reasons that make this film valuable. I want it to spark positive conversations, whether people love it or not or agree with the characters or not. The film does seem to spark a lot of productive conversations, allowing people to explore something they might feel despair about.
My fondest hope is that the film will have an impact culturally in the sense that enough people will see it, talk about it, and feel that it’s opening up a conversation about polarization that maybe isn’t happening now.
MM: I would say I certainly hope that this gets broad exposure and is placed somewhere where a mass audience can see it. I also see this as a possibility to use as a resource for many local churches that are having discussions or can prompt that. I could see showing this in my own local church and using it to really prompt a discussion about political differences and challenges and really bring people together because it would be something fun for people to do to come to see and then have a discussion about it afterward.
Mark Rodgers: Juliet, personally, I'm going for the Oscar. I just don't think we don't need to shoot any lower than that, but short of that, I would hope this can serve as a healing agent because I think in it, you see your best of self and your worst of yourself potentially. Hopefully, it becomes a corrective and helps heal some relationships that have been strained under the polarization that has taken place broadly in the culture over political dynamics.
JV: So Erik, can you share what you need now to finish this film and how people can get involved?
EB: The film is in post-production, and we are still seeking funds for various tasks needed to finish the movie. We need around $50,000 to do the final sound mix, color correction, visual effects, and other things you do when you're finishing a movie, legal costs, etc. Possibly a little bit beyond that to present to a distributor, promote it, publicize it, and do trailers and key art.
But the ways in which to get involved, there is a Wefunder page. Wefunder is an equity crowdfunding platform where anybody can put in as little as $100 and be an investor in the movie, so you’ll have a stake in the equity of the movie. That's Wefunder.com/ComingTogether.
About half of our budget so far has come from nonprofit tax-deductible contributions, which can come through a fiscal sponsor. There is information on that Wefunder page about how to go through that fiscal sponsor to give tax-deductible money as a donation versus an investment. On that page you can also find a “sizzle reel,” which is a five-minute sampling of some of the footage that gives a sense of the story, as well as other videos, information, and updates from me about the project and some behind-the-scenes on-set videos with the actors.
JV: Wonderful. Thank you so much. Mark and Mike, do you have any other ideas on how you would like to see people get more involved, either with Coming Together or having bridge-building conversations?
MR: Mike and I are both associate producers, and have both come in as financial supporters.I would just invite others to join us, it's not often that you get to open up your own IMDB page and say you're an associate producer of a film for $10,000, so come join us. We want to represent the diversity of perspectives like Mike and I have, that see the value of this film. So, we invite you to join us.
MM: Being a contributor to the project has been a lot of fun for me, and I hope other people will support it financially.
JV: Yes, absolutely. Well, that's everything. Thank you for closing us out, Mike.
To stay informed about the film, visit the Wefunder page, or follow the Instagram @comingtogethermovie for updates.