Kartemquin Films is pleased to announce the World Premiere of its latest documentary, All The Queen’s Horses, at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival at 1PM on Wednesday, August 9th. The film is a finalist in the festival’s HBO Documentary Competition.
Ahead of the world premiere, Gravitas Ventures has acquired VOD and television rights for this riveting in-depth story of large fraud in a small town.
All the Queen’s Horses tells the story of Rita Crundwell, the perpetrator of the largest case of municipal fraud in American history. As city comptroller of Dixon, IL (population 15,838), Crundwell stole $53 million dollars of public funds across 20 years. She used the funds to build one of the nation’s leading quarter horse breeding empires, all while forcing staff cuts, police budget slashing, and neglect of public infrastructure. ALL THE QUEEN’S HORSES investigates her crime, her lavish lifestyle and the small town she left in her wake.
About the filmmaker
The film is the debut feature from director Kelly Richmond Pope, Ph.D., CPA, an associate professor in the School of Accountancy and MIS at DePaul University and founder of Helios Digital Learning. Pope’s work and research across her academic and professional careers has centered around fraud, and her first educational documentary, Crossing the Line: Ordinary People Committing Extraordinary Crimes, has won numerous national education innovation awards and is used in colleges, universities, and corporations throughout the country.
“The story of Rita Crundwell is something all citizens need to be aware of, because if a fraud of this magnitude could happen in Dixon, it can happen anywhere,” said Pope. “I’m delighted to finally bring this film to the public in partnership with Kartemquin, Helios Digital Learning and Gravitas.”
Pope developed the film through the inaugural Diverse Voices in Docs fellowship, a professional development and mentorship program for documentary makers of color, organized by Kartemquin Films and the Community Film Workshop of Chicago, and funded in part by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. All the Queen’s Horses participated in the 2016 TFI Network Market at the Tribeca Film Festival, 2016 Hot Docs Deal Makers and 2013 Tribeca Hacks with the Tribeca Film Institute.
All The Queen’s Horses was directed and produced by Kelly Richmond Pope, and co-produced and edited by Lesley Kubistal. The film was shot by Bing Liu, Keith Walker, and Margaret Byrne, and is executive produced by Ivy Walker, Justine Nagan, Gordon Quinn, Betsy Steinberg, Justin Dearborn, and Nicholas Gialamas.
To learn more, follow the film on Twitter, Facebook and here.
