PBS, BBC, France 3 partner for civil rights march doc

Pubcasters PBS, BBC Three and France 3 are all onboard a new documentary honoring the fiftieth anniversary of a watershed moment in the US’s Civil Rights Movement.

The March will look into a massive demonstration on August 28, 1963 for racial and economic equality in which the late Dr. Martin Luther King delivered his iconic ‘I Have a Dream’ speech.

All three channels will are coproducers – along with Sundance Productions, Smoking Dogs Films and Cactus Three – with PBS premiering the doc on the eve of the anniversary on August 27.

Major funding for the doc came from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s Diversity and Innovation Fund.

John Akomfrah is directing with Krysanne Katsoolis from Cactus Three, and Robert Redford and Laura Michalchyshyn from Sundance Productions executive producing. Sam Pollard is consulting producer, with Gina Belafonte associate producer.

“Viewers turn to PBS to provide great programs that explore our nation’s history,” said Beth Hoppe, PBS’s chief programming executive and general manager, general audience programming. “The 50th anniversary of this major milestone provides the perfect opportunity to examine the legacy of the original March.”

“The story of people who suffered profound injustice in America and fought it with sacrifice and courage is something we should never forget,” said Redford. “I hope the generations who see this film will be inspired by it.”