This film is based on a true story which I met in a ferry in 2016. Unfortunately, people who are different in society are prejudiced. This film focuses on this problem. Despite everything, not to giving up hope will be the most important response to negative behaviors such as prejudice, otherization, belittling…

“Living in Chains is an eye-opening documentary for anyone who watches it. Intriguing, it represents the complexity of culture itself and deep-rooted beliefs that are difficult to change. Rather than striving to enact change, this short documentary was produced in hopes of touching hearts and enlightening every individual on unconventional ways human beings resort to when it comes to dealing with mental illness. Albeit idealistic, hopefully, one day, the human race would be able to treat the mentally ill with equal rights and dignity.”

The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA) commissioned the short film not knowing production would start on the same day President Trump signed an Executive Order to deny U.S. entrance to anyone from the seven countries of Iraq, Syria, Libya, Iran, Yemen, Sudan and Somalia. Academy award nominee Barkhad Abdi signed up for the project unaware that two of the places he lived – Somalia and Yemen would be included in the ban. Born in Mogadishu, Somalia, on April 10, 1985, Abdi earned wide acclaim for his first film role in Captain Phillips (2013) and has gone on to be cast in the highly anticipated “Blade Runner” reboot.

“America; I Too” draws its title from the Langston Hughes poem “I Too,” and is as much a work of protest and community organizing as it is a work of art. The film features a predominantly immigrant cast and crew including over 250 Extras, most of whom are undocumented immigrants living in greater Los Angeles, the San Fernando Valley, and Lancaster, California. The cast and crew worked together to shoot the short in just three days, creating an empowerment tool for immigrant communities desperate for education around what to do in the event of arrest or pending deportation couched in a personal and moving story.

As my directorial debut it has been a joy for me to work on this project. My hope is that this film will give a sense of what undocumented immigrant families and detainees are struggling with in the United States as well as remind Americans of what is at the core of the American Dream; justice, fairness, opportunity and yes, fighting like hell for our constitutional rights.

Kenn Little is enrolled in the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. He received his BA in Graphic Design and New Media from Full Sail University in 2013. He is a multifaceted artist, writer, videographer and musician and often combines those abilities on his projects

John Little is enrolled in the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. He graduated with his BA from South Dakota State and MA in history from the University of South Dakota. He is currently a PhD student in history at the University of Minnesota.