Observations of Hollywood as 1958-1964 Detroit Part 2 @resurgofilm
I lived 20 Years near sf and in Ventura and for the past 20 in detroit.
Make sure to go to YouTube Resurgo:Detroit to subscribe. Beginning a series to bring my 20 years of detroit documentation, along with modern day detroit moments to life in longer form. YouTube; I fought it for 15 years, heck I just got a Spotify, but the immediacy of the content is what I’m anticipating making an impact.
Centralized industries require density, population and industrial areas.
After WWII
Auto making left Detroit city to the suburbs, other states and other countries from 52-90s, automation, the opec oil crisis and the rising foreign market.
This series is a reaction from a Hollywood reporter report on how Hollywood could be the next Detroit. I’m a Californian filmmaker who transplanted to Detroit 20 years ago and documented the city expensively.
Jack reposted this! Detroit in her blood. @officialjackwhite@resurgofilm thank you for the incredible show and representing and reflecting the love for our city. Shooting during sound check @michigancentraldetroit grand opening June 6, 2024. Full scene in @resurgofilm
Incredible test screening at the Penn in Plymouth. Thank you for everyone coming out for the honesty and growth in everyone’s comments.
The film was met with an incredible Q&A session full of peoples memories of what they loved about Detroit hopeful conversations and genuine sense that the fear that people have had for the city of Detroit weren’t justified. as I continue to show this film across metro Detroit I meet hundreds of people who moved out during White flight as kids, many of them saying that they were a victim of a real estate ploy. One person said that she wished she could see the neighborhood that she moved from which doesn’t exist anymore and what it would’ve been like if they hadn’t moved, but they would’ve just welcomed new people into it instead of living in fear. People asked about transit people asked me about the Riverfront Development people asked me about Brightmore and why it wasn’t developed. People asked me about Portland about Colorado about my face and about a prayer walk in 2011. The prayer walk question was probably one of the more interesting ones because she asked do you think the prayer did anything I responded” I’m standing here. Aren’t I? “ my night ended praying with three people and then playing frisbee. Thank you everyone who came to the Penn Theatre and for the Penn Theatre family who put so much into this I’ll see you again in Plymouth.
Ford x Carhart w a side of McGee
honored to be a part of this project and thank you everyone for opening up your lives to my Lens and @fordpro and @carhartt for trusting me with your stories. Great job @stoopidtall and @tibbs_inc 🫡 Filmed @michigancentraldetroit
Featured @lopeztiredetroit
My documentary Resurgo TheDetroitFilm.com is a people powered portrait of the city and draws urgent parallels between the 1960s rust belt with the declining tech belt on the West Coast. It is a deeply personal, two-decade cinematic archive documenting the rise, fall, and reinvention of Detroit through the lived experience of filmmaker Stephen McGee. What began as photojournalism evolved into a life’s work, an immersive record of a city often misunderstood by national narratives. After traveling to nearly 40 countries documenting humanitarian crises and the ruins of past empires, McGee recognized similar themes of resilience when he arrived in Detroit in 2005. Rather than portraying decline alone, Resurgo reframes Detroit as a mirror of America itself, revealing how communities endure beyond economic collapse.
Resurgo at Marygrove reactions part 3 - next screening at Penn Theater 7pm. You can buy $5 tickets at Penn theater in Plymouth the day before, they don’t have online sales. @resurgofilm
Resurgo : More incredible feedback from @marygroveschool . Looks like i’ve got some more work to do including a stronger neighborhoods Section into my FILM. Which five should I include? @donny_comedy_@thedetroitdiscussion
Stay for her message. Thank you Leslie for your spirit and beauty. Doing everything I can with what I have and what I have been given. Resurgo, a wip 20 year documentary on Detroit/the west coast. Thank you @marygroveschool@jessicacaremoor@kresgeartsdetroit@thekresgefoundation next Detroit/LA/Silicon valley test screening tbd. TheDetroitFilm.com film by @justinjdunn I get all of my swag and prints from @secondstorycollection
Game 7 Victory Let’s Go Pistons. I met @fearthefro when he was honored at the @detroithistorical society. I photographed him on a cloudy day outside against a grey wall. Honored to have had the moment and thank you Ben. Photographing him I remembered I first met him on the riverfront in 2006 and shook his hand and remembered my hand was so much smaller when I shook his. Even back then he gave me time. Detroit is full of legends. Free screening of Resurgo at Marygrove. May 5. Tickets in bio.
Resurgo Sold out Standing ovation in traverse city @freshcoastfilm . I loved all of the stories afterwards from people and the contributions Their families made to building Detroit. Thank you fresh coast. See you Sunday. @oldmissionculturecompany
I remember rolling through downtown Detroit in the 90s with my folks, thinking I was in a ghost town. 30 years later, I profiled award-winning documentarian @stephen_mcgee and his upcoming film @resurgofilm about a comeback story in an iconic American city that never really left. Read all about it at the Northern Express Features link in my bio.
