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[MJSunshine]

On June 14th the Documentary channel in the US will air a programme called "The Trials of Michael Jackson". Watch the trailer:



And read what the filmmakers say about the programme:

"Try to imagine two filmmakers taking their video cameras in hand to film the hoopla around a celebrity trial... the trial of none other than legendary pop star Michael Jackson. Even though Barry Shaw and Dana Gedrick knew this was no oridnary celebrity trial, it would prove to be far from anything the pair of them had expected to encounter.

For starters, they had not anticipated the fierce extent to which the fans' compassion would influence journalists and media covering the trial, nor had they forseen the extent to which the media's personal feelings and biases would enter into what would be presented to the public. The result was for Barry and Dana to realize that such strong personal feelings on the part of the media all but precluded the hope of presuming innocence.

Try to imagine, as well, that you are a staunch and devoted fan of a man despised by much of the world. Imagine that you are only a few against so many who've already condemned the defendant in their hearts. Your view may appear extreme to many, though to you, the fan, it is precisely the opposite; it is the others' views that are extreme.

It is true that opinions can obscure facts, but in this case, it is almost a given that media coverage would play a part in distorting facts to the point where a fair trial becomse almost impossible... especially when the accused has already been deemed guilty by a majority of the population. In Barry Shaw's opinion, there was something inherently wrong with using a high publicized child molestation trial to increase media ratiings. For Dana Gedrick, mother of three sons, it was more about keeping her personal feelings out of her work.

Together, the two filmmakers came up with the idea of turning the cameras around on the media.

While we all know that it is impossible to remain uninfluenced by what goes on around us, media coverage and personal opinions have the potential to shroud facts, and in the minds of some individuals, totally obliterate them. It was for these reasons that Barry and Dana decided to focus on the media's influence in the trial of Michael Jackson and allow their film to demonstrate just how impossible it is to remain untouched by that which we witness or become a part of.

[...]The two filmmakers of “The Trials of Michael Jackson”, Dana Gedrick and Barry Shaw, reluctantly found themselves embroiled in the tug of war between the media and the fans. A variety of notable news and entertainment reporters from around the world found the camera turned on them. Michael Jackson’s fans came to show their support for him as well as give their views on the accusations surrounding the super star. Much of the media seemed more interested in exploiting the fans than reporting the situation. The film evolved from the filmmaker’s observations of the interesting dynamics between the media and the fans."

http://www.thetrials...haeljackson.com

[MJSunshine]

Thank you to MJsChitownBoo from MJJC for this review of the show. I would love to see it very soon.


"So I thought this was going to be another hour long show questioning Michael's innocence. I was wrong. This film was brilliant. It was about the fans. It was about us defending Michael Jackson's name outside the Santa Maria courthouse. These people, Barry Shaw and Dana Gedrick, showed the truth. They were fresh out of film school and they lived an hour away from Santa Maria. When they first started filming, it was supposed to be a joke, but the fans opened their eyes to what the media was doing and they ended up turning their cameras on the media! You get to see ROGER FRIEDMAN, JIM MORET, CNN and COURT TV REPORTERS AND REPORTERS from all over the world nervously trying to avoid the camera while they are being asked what their TRUE motives are out there. And its not the regular stock footage the media shows. This is real and raw behind the scenes footage. It shows what the media did not want the public to see. Remember Art Harris from CNN? Well, they showed him pre-recording his coverage of the CONVICTION of Michael Jackson. After he was done, Dana Gedrick asked him where he went to journalism school. She was a BEAST!

They also showed never before seen footage of Michael meeting a fan and yes, I cried. It was heartbreaking."

[MJ'sGirl]

This looks amazing thank you for posting this!!!