speaking out about a broken justice system
The Gathering is a film that tells the story of Witness to Innocence, the largest organization of death row exonerees in the country.
These innocent men and women, some having spent decades on death row for murders they didn’t commit, come together once a year to share their thoughts and feelings, fears and dreams with the only people who really understand what they experienced. Their stories are heartbreaking, shocking and anger-provoking. The exonerees empower each other, speaking out about a broken justice system that makes mistakes and compels them to be warriors against the death penalty.
Meet 16 exonerees, a diverse group brought together by a common experience, a unique family to whom no one chooses to belong. They bare their souls, forever changed by the degradation they suffered. Like Anthony Ray Hinton who spent 30 years on death row, released only six months before the filming. And Debra Milke who spent 22 years on death row, joining the others at her first Gathering. These exonerees are passionate about telling their stories. They want the system changed so a competent defense doesn’t depend on money and racial bias is eliminated. They want dishonest prosecutors and police held accountable. They want compensation for the years lost. They want their dignity restored. They know the risk of executing an innocent person is too high.
SCREENINGS
March 10 – 23 rd, 2022
Pan African Film Festival 30 Year Retrospective
Los Angeles, CA
January 20, 2022
Vienna Short Film Festival
Vienna, Austria
October 12, 2021
OTB “Only the Best Film Festival”
Miami, FL
October 8, 2021
Berlin Short Film Festival
Berlin, Germany
October 8, 2021
Tokyo Short Film Festival
Tokyo, Japan
October 8, 2021
Sydney Indie Short Film Festival
Sydney, Australia
August 20, 2021
Phoenix Shorts Film Festival
Ottawa, Ontario
August 14, 2021
San Francisco Indie Short Film Festival
San Francisco, CA
September 19, 2020
Justice on Trial Film Festival
Los Angeles, CA
December 18, 2019
Orion Int'l Film Festival
Australia
September 16, 2019
Global Peace Film Festival
Orlando, Florida
September 4, 2019
Roma Prisma Film Awards
Rome, Italy
April 16, 2019
Canada Int'l Film Festival
Vancouver, British Columbia
October 8, 2019
(In)justice Film Festival
Trinity UCC, Chicago, IL
September 21, 2019
Global Peace Film Festival
Rollins College SunTrust Auditorium, Winter Park, FL
May 27, 2018
Garifuna International Indigenous Film Festival (GIIFF)
Electric Lodge Theater, Los Angeles, CA
May 4, 2018
WTI's Annual Gathering
San Damiano Auditorium at the Franciscan Renewal Center, Scottsdale, AZ
February 16, 2018
Pan African Film and Arts Festival
Cinemark Baldwin Hills and XD, Los Angeles, CA
February 13, 2018
Pan African Film and Arts Festival
Cinemark Baldwin Hills and XD, Los Angeles, CA
November 18, 2017
2017 Social Justice Film Festival
Northwest African American Museum, Seattle, WA
October 14, 2017
2017 Journey of Hope through Texas
Strake Jesuit College Preparatory, Parsley Center Auditorium, Houston, TX
August 27, 2018
Global Impact Film Festival
Renaissance Washington DC Downtown Hotel, Washington, DC
August 26, 2017
Sidewalk Film Festival
First Church Birmingham, Birmingham, AL
May 13, 2017
Black International Cinema Festival
Haus der Demokratie und Menschrechte, Berlin, Germany
March 15, 2017
Socially Relevant Film Festival
Cinepolis Chelsea, New York City, NY
March 12, 2017
Omaha Film Festival
Village Pointe Cinema, Omaha, NE
March 11, 2017
Peace on Earth Film Festival
Music Box Theater, Chicago, IL
December 8, 2016
Center for Contemporary Arts, Santa Fe, NM
November 13, 2016
Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival
Savor Cinema, Fort Lauderdale, FL
October 17, 2016
Delegation of the European Union's World Premiere of "The Gathering" Film
French Embassy, Washington, D.C.
Micki Dickoff
Director-Writer-Producer-Editor
Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Micki Dickoff has made social justice films for four decades. Her work addresses subjects like AIDS, human rights, racism, poverty, the justice system and the death penalty. Micki’s award-winning films have been screened at festivals worldwide, broadcast on national and international television and released theatrically to positive reviews by top critics, including A.O. Scott of The New York Times and Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times. Her documentaries include Neshoba: The Price of Freedom and Too Little, Too Late, and dramas Mother, Mother and In the Blink of an Eye. Micki was chosen for the American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women where she developed Mother, Mother. She was selected by the State Department for the American Documentary Showcase to teach filmmaking and screen her work in Kenya. Micki was among three finalists for the prestigious Humanitas Prize for her civil rights film, Neshoba. Micki taught television and film at Emerson College in Boston and is a member of the Directors Guild of America (DGA) and the International Documentary Association (IDA).