Documentary sheds light on human side of GM plant closing in Moraine
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September 7, 2009
Given that almost 1,100 autoworkers in Moraine were about to lose their jobs, it's hard to believe that The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant began in comparatively innocent times.
"Someone mentioned the possible bankruptcy of General Motors when we started shooting in June (of 2008), and everyone, including us, said, 'Oh, that's not going to happen,' " said documentary co-director Steven Bognar.
"The idea of GM going bankrupt was like the U.S. government going bankrupt: It was really inconceivable."
GM did file for bankruptcy -- a year later, in June -- after months of speculation. Yet Bognar and co-director Julia Reichert, residents of Yellow Springs, resisted any urge to turn their intimate portrait of soon-to-be-displaced employees into a comprehensive look at the troubled U.S. auto industry.
The result is a 40-minute film dominated by the personal stories of workers left jobless when the facility, just south of Dayton, closed on Dec. 23.
The employees express frustration and anxiety in the months preceding the closing, along with great pride in the jobs they performed -- in some cases, for more than two decades.
Little news footage is used. Talking heads don't appear.
"We saw it as something that was going to have a huge impact on our community, and we thought that was worth documenting," said Reichert, a two-time Academy Award nominee, for the documentaries Union Maids and Seeing Red.
"We didn't really see this as a national thing."
Regardless, the documentary will be viewed by a national audience: T he Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant will be shown at 9 tonight on HBO and continue to be carried on various HBO outlets throughout the month.
It was chosen to conclude the summer documentary series -- an especially appropriate choice for Labor Day, when the nation commemorates the social and economic achievements of American workers, said Lisa Heller, vice president of HBO Documentary Films.
A DVD, meanwhile, is forthcoming.
"We were looking for a human way to show the economic crisis," Heller said, "and the fact that Steven and Julia were from a community where this was happening was a huge draw for us.
"It wasn't outsiders parachuting in and leaving afterward."
Heller also admired the filmmakers' previous works, including A Lion in the House, an Emmy-winning 2006 film that follows families battling cancer. The almost-four-hour documentary, created from more than 500 hours of footage, was completed over nine years.
The Last Truck, from its first day of shooting until its premiere for former plant employees last month at the Schuster Performing Arts Center in Dayton, took about 15 months. More than 150 hours of footage shot between June and December 2008 was edited to 40 minutes.
"We're used to a much more deliberative process of editing where we do more test screenings and take time off to live with it for a little bit," said Bognar, who explained that initial funding was provided by an Ohio Arts Council grant.
"Here, we had to really trust our instincts more."
The film was well- received by former employees who attended the Dayton premiere -- some of whom shot footage inside the plant after receiving mini-lessons in cinematography from the filmmakers.
Many of the workers shown in the film have yet to find new jobs.
"Unfortunately, the jobs are gone and we're not getting anything back," said Kim Clay, 48, of Dayton, an electrician at the plant for eight years.
"So I hope the documentary draws attention to the plight of the worker. There is a skilled work force here which is going to have to disperse to find work. That work force won't be here forever, but we're here now and need jobs."
Kate Geiger, 45, of Centerville is taking classes through Sinclair Community College for a degree in visual communication. The former forklift operator worked at the plant for 24 years.
She went to see the film as well as friends.
In front of the Schuster center sat the last truck produced by the plant: a white GMC Envoy.
"When Steve and Julia (first) showed up, everyone was like 'Oh, God, who is that standing at the gate?' " Geiger said. "But, deep down, I think a lot of people wanted to tell their story.
"They were really grateful that somebody asked."
The worker stories have already proved powerful enough to raise eyebrows outside Dayton and the HBO offices in New York. The film was also picked to play at the Telluride (Colo.) Film Festival, ending today.
Bognar and Reichert, a couple as well as filmmaking partners, credited the film's subjects with creating a welcoming environment during a trying time.
"It's a two-way street," Bognar said. "You have to make yourself open and vulnerable to the people who trust you -- just like they make themselves open and vulnerable to you and your damn camera."
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