Documentary
Tracks Rohnert Park Casino Debate
As reported by the San Francisco
Chronicle: "When Rohnert Park citizens came
out to speak up about a possible casino being planned
in their backyard, it's unlikely that anyone considered
their appearance might one day be shown at a local
film festival. But that's exactly what happened
with the production of 'The Rules of the Game,'
a documentary by San Francisco journalists Garance
Burke and Monica Lam, who covered the issue as part
of their course work while graduate students at
UC Berkeley.
"The 26-minute film, which follows
the controversy that erupts when the Federated Indians
of Graton Rancheria clashes with a California town
over plans to build a casino, will be screened as
part of the 19th annual Wine Country Film Festival,
which opens Thursday in Sonoma County.
"Burke and Lam were on the documentary track
at UC Berkeley's graduate school of journalism and
had been looking for an idea that would involve
an issue featuring California demographics.
"…Central to the issue, Burke said,
was a memorandum of understanding between the city
council and the tribal council that left some residents
feeling left out of the loop and horrified at the
prospect of a 2,000-slot- machine casino, hotel
complex and super-sized parking lot. Others in the
community looked at the proposed casino as an opportunity
to put revenue in the city's coffers and bring jobs
to Rohnert Park.
"The film poses the questions: Will casinos
pave the way to a better future for American Indians?
And can communities make room for neighbors they
once pushed out?..."
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