SONY PICTURES CLASSICS ACQUIRES WORLDWIDE RIGHTS TO ‘WHO WE ARE’ 2021 SXSW AUDIENCE AWARD WINNER

NEW YORK (June 25, 2021) – Sony Pictures Classics announced today that they have acquired all worldwide rights to the documentary film WHO WE ARE — A Chronicle of Racism in America, directed by Emily Kunstler & Sarah Kunstler and written by Jeffery Robinson. Following an awards qualifying run at the end of this year, the film will be released on January 14, 2022, and expand throughout the month of February, Black History Month.

Interweaving lecture, personal anecdotes, interviews, and shocking revelations, in WHO WE ARE — A Chronicle of Racism in America, criminal defense/civil rights lawyer Jeffery Robinson draws a stark timeline of anti-Black racism in the United States, from slavery to the modern myth of a post-racial America. 

The documentary, which had its world premiere at the 2021 SXSW Film Festival, where it won the Documentary Spotlight Audience Award, is produced by Robinson, Emily and Sarah Kunstler, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Andrea Crabtree, Vanessa Hope, Susan Korda, Katharine Nephew, and Jayashri Wyatt, and executive produced by Ted Hope.  

"WHO WE ARE opens our eyes to our history as a nation and people unlike any movie that has come before,” said Sony Pictures Classics. “Jeffery Robinson rivets us to the truth. As directed by Emily and Sarah Kunstler, this is that rare, thrilling movie experience meant to be seen on the big screen. It is a privilege to be bringing the movie to audiences worldwide.” 

“We recently saw a large number of our elected officials vote to make Juneteenth a national holiday while also advocating for laws restricting what can be taught about the causes and aftermath of Juneteenth. The unvarnished truth about the role anti-Black racism has played and is playing in our country is needed now more than ever. Our WHO WE ARE Team is thrilled that Sony Pictures Classics will help us bring accurate, verifiable information to our youth, our leaders, and our broader community,” said Robinson. 

“Jeffery Robinson is an electrifying storyteller who invites audiences of all races to view the history of anti-Black racism in America, and the erasure of this history, as a crime perpetrated on all of us,” said Emily Kunstler. “It has been an honor for Sarah and me to work with Jeffery on this film, and we are proud to partner with Sony Pictures Classics to bring Jeffery’s work to the widest possible audience.”

The deal was negotiated by ICM Partners on behalf of the filmmakers.

ABOUT SONY PICTURES CLASSICS   

Michael Barker and Tom Bernard serve as co-presidents of Sony Pictures Classics—an autonomous division of Sony Pictures Entertainment they founded with Marcie Bloom in January 1992—which distributes, produces, and acquires independent films from around the world.  Barker and Bernard have released prestigious films that have won 41 Academy Awards® (37 of those at Sony Pictures Classics) and have garnered 181 Academy Award® nominations (155 at Sony Pictures Classics) including Best Picture nominations for THE FATHER, CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, WHIPLASH, AMOUR, MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, AN EDUCATION, CAPOTE, HOWARDS END, AND CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON. 

ABOUT SONY PICTURES ENTERTAINMENT     

Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE's global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition, and distribution; television production, acquisition, and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. SPE’s Motion Picture Group production organizations include Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, Screen Gems, TriStar Pictures, 3000 Pictures, Stage 6 Films, AFFIRM Films, and Sony Pictures Classics. For additional information, visit  http://www.sonypictures.com/corp/divisions.html