We are Act Now Films and this is our mission.
We make independent, uncompromised, social justice documentaries that speak truth to power.
We believe in the power of filmic storytelling that promotes rationality, compassion and respect for others, in the interest of dignity, justice and peace.
Films can make a difference. Above all we seek to grab, inform and activate individuals to become conscious global citizens.
Good journalism is subversive. Our journalism has a focus on justice and peace. We believe in exposing commercialised truth, and often, challenging conventional wisdom.
Some simpletons talk of knowledge as rendering the working classes more obedient, more dutiful… but such knowledge is trash; the only knowledge which is of any service to working people is that which makes them more dissatisfied and makes them worse slaves. This is the knowledge we shall give them.
Bronterre O’Brien (1836)
We like to focus on ‘truth’ in our reporting: we don’t pretend there’s one truth in any story; but there are truths, versions of events and interpretations of reality that are more useful and empowering for ordinary people. We seek narratives that are more real than those traditionally offered by the corporate mainstream media system. We see the importance of giving a voice to ordinary people, rather than spokespeople.
The condition of truth is to allow the suffering to speak.
Cornel West
We don’t seek ‘balance’ for its own sake. We know that ‘objectivity’ is a theory. Instead, we accept the inherent good in advocating for fundamental human rights and social justice. Our documentaries uncover often overlooked injustices.
If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor
Rt Revd. Desmond Tutu
We are committed to uncompromised journalism. We follow the facts and question assumptions. We have the courage to speak truth to power. We don’t have to subordinate truth to corporate profit, because of our independent economics.
We understand the failures of so-called ‘professional journalism’: the inherent allegiance to vested (establishment) interests and the practical problems of modern mass media companies. Unlike many in the mainstream, we do not believe that servility to power is a virtue: we refuse to act as stenographers for power.
We are dedicated to maintaining our independence from the interest systems of mainstream politics and media. This allows us to cut through spin and propaganda, and report absolute truth that the mainstream often censors by omission. The public has a right to know.
We also recognise the failures of some documentary films. Beautifully captured stories are like blunt instruments when they lack political, historical or sociological context. We seek to give this context to stories. This is a vital element of providing people with uncompromised information.
When covering global conflicts, we see the power of overturning the myths of ‘intractable conflicts’, by exposing facts at the crux of conflicts. The fate of countless people’s lives depends on the truth being known.
When our documentaries provoke debate or advocate for a cause, we work with campaign groups and NGOs that share the film’s philosophy, so the message is widely reached and a real difference is made.
All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.
Edmund Burke
It’s all too easy for audiences to ‘go back to their ways’, having seen an enlightening documentary. We seek to make documentaries that are hard-hitting and often challenging, and that leave indelible impressions on viewers.
We beg of our viewers: Stay Awake. Act Now.