Sundance

Ro*Co Films, Abramorama and Film Sprout partner to distribute the highly-anticipated documentary about abortion laws, in theaters and community screenings, in advance of SCOTUS landmark case

PBS' Independent Lens will broadcast the film in June

Trilogy Films, Big Mouth Productions, Cedar Creek Productions and Chicken & Egg Pictures have announced a partnership with Ro*Co Films, Abramorama, Film Sprout and Independent Lens to distribute Dawn Porter's TRAPPED beginning in New York City, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C. on March 4^th. The nationwide release of the film comes just as the U.S. Supreme Court takes on Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt, the landmark case that will determine the constitutionality of "TRAP" (Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers) laws.

Directed by Dawn Porter (GIDEON'S ARMY), TRAPPED follows the struggles of the clinic workers and lawyers who are on the front lines of a battle to keep abortion safe and legal for millions of American women. The film recently won the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Social Impact Filmmaking at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival.

The distribution partnership will allow the filmmakers to maximize their reach by conducting educational and community screenings during the theatrical window and reducing the time between the broadcast window.  Abramorama will handle theatrical distribution for the film, which will open at the IFC Center in New York, the Landmark on Pico in Los Angeles and the E Street Cinema in DC.  Additional markets will follow throughout the spring.  Ro*Co Films, in conjunction with Film Sprout, will handle educational and community screenings while PBS' Independent Lens will air the film in June timed to the announcement of the Supreme Court's decision. 

Director Dawn Porter said, "When I first heard what was happening in some of the Southern states and the challenges forced upon these clinicians, I knew I had to tell their stories.  The need for safe spaces, both medically and emotionally, is paramount for women to have access to health care."

"A true nationwide release of the film is our goal," said Annie Roney, founder of Ro*Co Films.  "As distributors we are usually windowed against each other.  But Abramorama and Film Sprout were willing to try something new, so that all of America can access the film and see it together - whether that be in big city commercial theaters, on college campuses or in community centers and private homes.  It's not unlike our larger goal - to keep access to abortion available to every woman in every state." 

Marilyn Ness, producer, said, "Given the pending Supreme Court decision we realize this is an exceptionally rare opportunity for a documentary to be accessible at precisely the moment the issue addressed crystallizes in the collective social consciousness.  Through our partners we are now able to make TRAPPED available to audiences however and wherever they gather to see it - in theaters, in community screenings, and at festivals nationwide.  We are further thrilled that the film will be available in every home in the country when it broadcasts on Independent Lens in June."

"Three companies, ostensibly with different agendas, are instead working in concert to make this film accessible to as many people as possible as quickly as possible," said Richard Abramowitz of Abramorama. "Such is the power of cooperation when the stakes are this high. We hope our elected officials will see that such a thing is possible."

Since 2010, hundreds of laws regulating abortion clinics have been passed by conservative state legislatures, particularly in the south. These restrictions, known as TRAP laws (or Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers) are spreading across America.  Faced with increased costs of compliance and the alarming fear of violence from protestors, the stakes for the women and men on the frontlines couldn't be any higher. As the battle heads to the U.S. Supreme Court, TRAPPED follows the struggles of the clinic workers and lawyers fighting to keep abortion safe and legal for millions of American women, many of them poor and uninsured. The film shines a light on the work of several women's health providers including Dr. Willie Parker, Amy Hagstrom Miller (Whole Women's Health), Marva Sadler (Whole Women's Health), Nancy Northup (Center for Reproductive Rights), June Ayers (Reproductive Health Service), Dalton Johnson (Alabama Women's Center), and Gloria Gray (West Alabama Women's Center).

For more information visit the website at www.trappeddocumentary.com or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TrappedDoc.

ABOUT THE PARTNERS

Ro*Co Films

A leader in the documentary distribution world since 2000, Ro*Co Films understands that compelling real-life stories can educate and engage diverse audiences around emotionally gripping and universally important themes. Ro*Co Films launched an educational division in 2009 and has quickly become the premiere educational distributor of documentaries in North America. Focusing on film as a vehicle for advocacy and understanding, Ro*Co has distributed an award-winning collection of films such as, THE HUNTING GROUND, GOING CLEAR: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE PRISON OF BELIEF, INEQUALITY FOR ALL, THE INTERNET'S OWN BOY, A PLACE AT THE TABLE, GIRL RISING, HOW TO SURVIVE A PLAGUE, MISS REPRESENTATION THE INVISIBLE WAR, and CARTEL LAND.

Abramorama

An independent distribution and marketing company, Abramorama is an industry leader in the focused, personalized form of film distribution that provides invaluable alternatives to filmmakers and content owners. Currently releasing Laurie Anderson's astonishing New York Times critics' pick, HEART OF A DOG, Abramorama's multiple-nominated and award-winning titles also include Showtime's LISTEN TO ME MARLON (National Board of Review Winner) and Draft House's THE LOOK OF SILENCE (2016 Documentary Academy Award® Nominee and 2015 IDA Best Documentary Winner). 

Over the course of more than 20 years, Abramorama has successfully distributed and marketed hundreds of films, including Asif Kapadia's SENNA, Robert Stone's PANDORA'S PROMISE, Cameron Crowe's PEARL JAM TWENTY, Sacha Gervasi's ANVIL! THE STORY OF ANVIL, Banksy's Academy Award®-nominated EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP. the surprise indie hit AWAKE: THE LIFE OF YOGANANDA, and the critically acclaimed documentaries PARTICLE FEVER and AN HONEST LIAR.

Abramorama continues to lead in event cinema distribution, with recent titles including the Royal Opera House Ballet and Opera Cinema Season, Shakespeare's Globe on Screen, Matisse at the Tate, Hermitage Revealed, PLANETARY (launched theatrically on Earth Day, 2015), the visceral action sport feature THE SEARCH FOR FREEDOM, Green Day's HEART LIKE A HAND GRENADE, and Avi Lewis and Naomi Klein's THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING. 

Film Sprout

Film Sprout is a boutique distribution firm that helps filmmakers broaden the audience and social impact of their documentaries through high-impact public screening campaigns. The architect of national community and campus screening tours for dozens of independent documentaries and their makers, including the award-winning documentaries KING CORN, THE END OF THE LINE, PRAY THE DEVIL BACK TO HELL, A SMALL ACT, THE INVISIBLE WAR, UNFINISHED SPACES, DAMNATION, VESSEL and THE HUNTING GROUND, Film Sprout's campaigns bring powerful films beyond the traditional cinema and into grassroots institutions. Connecting social-issue films to the audiences best equipped to support and exhibit them in their local communities, Film Sprout's community screening tours aim to expand the audience for documentary; to connect high-quality documentary storytelling to those who are typically underserved by independent media (including low-income and rural communities and communities of color); to support independent filmmakers by tapping undiscovered sources of revenue; and to use the power of documentary film to foster citizen engagement, forward civic dialogue, encourage social equity and provide a forum for cultural and artistic discovery.

Independent Lens

Independent Lens is an Emmy Award®-winning weekly series airing on PBS Monday nights at 10 pm. The acclaimed series features documentaries united by the creative freedom, artistic achievement, and unflinching visions of independent filmmakers. Presented by ITVS, the series is funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people, with additional funding from PBS and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

Trilogy Films

Trilogy Films is a production company that specializes in creating award-winning, feature-length documentaries. The firm also works with businesses and non-profit organizations to create media that communicate big ideas in smart ways.

Big Mouth Productions

Big Mouth Productions was founded in 1997 to produce provocative and engaging social-issue documentaries and to provide production services for U.S. and international clients. Since its inception, Big Mouth has produced 12 feature-length documentaries that cover topics ranging from the criminal justice system to alternative healing. Our films have been shown theatrically, on Netflix, HBO, Cinemax, POV, Independent Lens, NBC, and Arte/ZDF, among others and have played at film festivals around the world, including Sundance, Full Frame, SXSW, Sheffield and Berlin. Today, Big Mouth Productions is run by filmmakers Katy Chevigny and Marilyn Ness.

Cedar Creek Productions

Cedar Creek Productions was founded in 2008 by Cindy Meehl. This film company is dedicated to creating the highest quality entertainment and bringing powerful stories to life. It is their mission to make films that encompass hope, inspiration, grace and understanding in this complex world we live in. Films include BUCK, DOGS ON THE INSIDE, UNBRANDED, TRAPPED and FOR THE BIRDS, which is in production now. Cedar Creek has also created "7 Clinics with Buck Brannaman," which is a 7-DVD equestrian educational series, and a music video with Templeton Thompson.

Chicken & Egg Pictures

Chicken & Egg Pictures supports women non-fiction filmmakers whose artful and innovative storytelling catalyzes social change.  Chicken & Egg Pictures envisions a world in which women non-fiction filmmakers, representing a range of diverse experiences and backgrounds, are fully supported to realize their artistic goals and vision, build sustainable careers, and achieve parity in all areas of the film industry. Since its inception in 2005, Chicken & Egg Pictures has awarded over $4 million in grants and more than 5,200 hours of mentorship to over 200 films. Films supported by Chicken & Egg Pictures have won numerous awards, including Oscars® and Emmys®; they have shifted deeply entrenched attitudes; and they have changed policy on a variety of critical human rights and social justice issues.