30 Frames a Second: The WTO in Seattle (2000)

Director:

Rustin Thompson

2 wins.

Storyline

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Plot Keywords:

protest | media | political repression | police | world trade organization

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Genres:

Documentary

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Details

Country:

USA

Release Date:

20 August 2000 (USA)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

73 min

User Reviews

Great film that shows what actually happened in Seattle

This film is one man's view of what took place during the WTO protests and not a complete document of events. This is recommended viewing for anyone despite it's very narrow and limited scope.

The events of those days were grossly misrepresent by all of the mainstream media. The reporters on the street, from the local TV stations, were constantly contradicting the anchors in the local news studios and vice versa. The citizens of Seattle were outraged by the mistreatment they suffered at the hands of the police, even a black city councilman was dragged from his car and roughed up on the way to a dinner with the President!

Many lawsuits resulted, the chief of police resigned (a good guy, too), even some of the policemen were outraged. I still haven't recovered my sense of security after seeing police running amok the way they did. Very little of the truth of those days during the WTO conference has made it to the country. It seems the only people who really know what transpired were people who were there. And not just the protesters, if you lived or worked downtown or on nearby Capitol Hill, where the police did incomprehensible things, it was impossible to feel like public safety was in the hands of people who had any humanity or brains. It is widely thought by those educated on these events that the very few, the small group of so-called "anarchists", that went on a brief rampage breaking windows and vandalizing property were being led by paid agitators. There was much evidence for it.

A much better film is 'This Is What Democracy Looks Like', a comprehensive compilation of footage shot by over 30 filmmakers.