Documentaries
Foundation of Justice: Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia | Click to View Trailer
MotionMasters’ newest documentary is about the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia and the state court system. “Foundation of Justice: Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia” gives viewers an understanding of the history of the Supreme Court, the Supreme Court Chamber designed by architect Cass Gilbert, and the West Virginia judicial process. It contains historical footage, archival photos, interviews, and detailed shots of the stunning Courtroom in the East Wing of the West Virginia Capitol. Copies of the video have been sent to middle school West Virginia studies teachers and high school teachers of civics, history and law courses, in both public and private schools.
Moving Monument | Click to View Trailer
We tracked down archival photographs and arcane tidbits from all over the state and beyond. We sought out—and secured—interviews with leading historians and experts. We wrote, shot and produced this documentary to tell the controversial, and at times, catastrophic story of the six statehouses that have served as West Virginia’s Capitol.
Soul of the Senate | Click to View Trailer
He never ran a race he didn’t win –whether for political office or a leadership post in the Democratic Party. He has cast more votes than any senator in our nation’s history. He penned the History of the United States Senate – a massive four volume set that took 10 years and hundreds of legal pads.
“The Soul of the Senate: A Documentary of U.S. Senator Robert C. Byrd ” is a 60-minute MotionMasters production that traces the life of an extraordinary man—a man who rose from poverty to become a powerful force in United States government and was named the “West Virginian of the Century.” See why he has been called “the soul of the Senate” in this insightful and beautifully produced piece.
A Principled Man: Rev. Leon Sullivan | Click to View Trailer
“Stand on your feet, black boy—stand up,” screamed the enraged owner of a local soda fountain. It was around 1930 and eight-year-old Leon H. Sullivan was told that he had no right—as an African American—to sit down and order a Coke at a neighborhood shop in his hometown of Charleston, W.Va.
The incident at the soda fountain was his first experience with blatant prejudice and would set his life’s work in motion. It was a pivotal point in the life of a man who would go on to mentor Martin Luther King, help free Nelson Mandela and play a significant role in ending apartheid in South Africa. It was the beginning of Rev. Leon Sullivan’s life-long mission to fight discrimination—a life that included creating the Opportunities Industrialization Centers (OIC), job training programs that have trained about 1.5 million people in 142 centers worldwide.
“A Principled Man: Rev. Leon Sullivan” is a MotionMasters documentary that will take you on a journey from the mountains of West Virginia to America’s board rooms and across the fields of Africa. Meet the man who worked tirelessly for equal pay for equal work and integration of the races in all eating, comfort and work facilities. Meet the man whose legacy, the Sullivan Foundation, beckons a MotionMasters crew to Africa every other year to document the Foundation’s summit conferences in video.
At each summit, African, American and world leaders collaborate in their quest to improve human rights, social justice, and economic fairness in Africa and to “Build a Bridge” between Africa and America. We’re there for every history-making moment of each summit and have captured images that will astound you with their power and clarity.
In 2008, the summit site was Tanzania. Next, it’s on to Kenya. See stunning HD highlights from last year’s mission and stay linked to this site for footage from the upcoming 2010 trip. Already there’s great anticipation at the thought of who may pay a visit to his native land of Africa for the summit…
View MotionMasters’ coverage of the Sullivan Foundation Summit VIII.
