Documentary Australia Foundation

Battleground Minnesota

Synopsis

Minnesota hip-hop activist Shakademic takes a journey through the election campaign in his hotly contested 'battleground state'. He speaks to teenagers, members of the Citizens League, the Minnesota College and Teenage Republicans, the DFL Party of Minnesota, the Green Party of Minnesota, the Republican Party of Minnesota, the Muslim American Society, Run Against Bush, the Taxpayers League of Minnesota and gives Walter Mondale a scratch lesson. Along with politics, hip-hop music is a key feature of the film.

Impact

Battleground Minnesota was produced in association with Phillips Community TV. The filmmakers received funding from Target, Best Buy and several individual donors.

Battleground Minnesota screened for the first time on the local PBS station. The film received the highest rating of any time slot and was screened additional times.

Battleground Minnesota is a 'Get Out the Vote' documentary aimed at encouraging young voters to be politically active. The filmmakers visited local high schools and screened the film, followed by Q & A sessions.

The filmmakers have continued to promote the film as an educational tool to encourage young people to vote. One of their strategies was to give out copies of the film in innovative ways to reach their target audience, including at McDonalds drive-thrus.