Miss Virginia is new feature film due to open on Oct. 18, about a mom fighting for a DC voucher program so that her son can go to a better school.
The film is supposedly “based on a true story” and is produced by Moving Picture Institute, which receives funding from the right-wing Koch brothers and Bradley Foundations, according to Source Watch. As of 2016, Rebekah Mercer was also on the board, so the organization probably received support from the Mercer Family Foundation too.
Here’s a summary of the film, from the MPI website:
Based on a true story, Miss Virginia stars Emmy-winner Uzo Aduba as a struggling single mother who is losing her teenaged son to the rough streets of Washington, D.C. Unwilling to see him drop out and deal drugs, she puts him in a private school. But when she can’t afford tuition, she launches a movement to change the system that is destroying him and thousands like him. This is the Moving Picture Institute’s first feature narrative film. On October 18, the film will be released in select theaters and on video on demand.
According to the movie's website, the film was called "a must-see movie" by The New York Times, USA Today, and Essence, though Rotten Tomatoes says this: There are no critic reviews yet for Miss Virginia.
According to Source Watch, MPI also helped produce a 2006 documentary called "Mine Your Own Business," which criticized environmentalists for opposing mining projects across the world.
According to Source Watch, MPI also helped produce a 2006 documentary called "Mine Your Own Business," which criticized environmentalists for opposing mining projects across the world.
Wikipedia described this film this way: “In the documentary, Lucian meets Mark Fenn from the World Wildlife Fund, who is shown living in luxurious conditions, at one point showing off his $35,000 sailboat to the cameras, all the while advocating the value of living a simplistic, village life... Criticisms of the film included the claim by environmentalist groups that the film was partly funded by Gabriel Resources, the Canadian mining company behind the proposed project, a fact which the filmmakers readily admit."
This new film is reminiscent of the pro-charter school film from 2012, Won’t Back Down, which was a huge critical and financial disaster. (See our review of the film from that time, and our FAQ about its backers and their political agenda.)
I don't understand your commentary on this movie. It seems negative but never indicates what is either incorrect or poorly presented in the movie. What is the problem with the movie? You say, 'this is another attempt by Koch brothers and other privatizers to influence the national education agenda' as if this movie, these people have no right. From your perspective, who does have the right to 'influence the national education agenda'? Only non-Koch brothers? Only those who agree with you? Really? I am having trouble understanding why you are so afraid of people having educational choices which is what this movie is about. What scares you about that?
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