Best-selling author, journalist, Medill senior lecturer and now Emmy Award-winning producer Alex Kotlowitz talked to The Current about his documentary and work to end violence in Chicago.
The Current: How does it feel to have an Emmy for “The Interrupters”?
Alex Kotlowitz: It’s been a long, terrific ride for this film. I mean, this film debuted two-and-a-half years ago, so I feel like whatever comes now is kind of gravy. I mean, certainly, it was a wonderful way to top off the run of this film … It felt terrific.
The Current: How did you become involved with CeaseFire (now titled “Cure Violence”)?
AK: I had done a cover story for The New York Times Magazine about the organization and their work. And it was during that piece that I got to know “the interrupters,” you know, the men and women around the table, folks I came to really admire … I found my way to CeaseFire in part because I had been grappling with the violence ever since I wrote “There Are No Children Here” some 20 years ago. A number of the kids that I knew during the time working on that book, one of them has been murdered, one of them is serving time for murder, and I’ve seen up close the profound impact it’s had on the spirit of individuals and the spirit of community. So, the article was really a beginning effort to try to make sense of the violence.
The Current: What made you decide to produce a film, as opposed to writing another book?
AK: My heart and soul is in my writing … In some ways I kind of stumbled into this, in large part because of Steve (James, director, producer, director of photography, and editor.) And I will tell you that this is one of the rare moments working on that magazine piece as I sat around the table with these “interrupters” … these men and women, most of them in their … forties and fifties who had been through a lot on the streets. Many of them had served many years in prison, and you can see these incredible journeys just etched on their faces. And there was something incredibly visual about it.
The Current: What impact has this documentary had on your life?
AK: I’ve been at this for 30 years so every project sort of takes on a life of its own. In the end, to be honest with you … the most life-changing project I’ve worked on was my first book, “There Are No Children Here,” in large part because it allowed me to write about things that I cared deeply about. … For me, on a very personal note, it’s really enriched my life, in large part because of the friendships that developed during the course of working on the film with the three main subjects, Cobe, Eddie and Ameena, and those are friendships that I deeply treasure.
The Current: What was your favorite part about producing “The Interrupters”?
AK: One of the things I love about working in radio and film is that it’s incredibly collaborative. … Despite the grave nature of the subject, I don’t think I’ve ever had so much fun working on a project, in part because of Steve and Zak (Piper, co-producer), and in part because of Cobe, Eddie and Ameena.
The Current: How has the public and/or Northwestern reacted to the documentary since its release?
AK: The release of the film has been a really extraordinary and special journey. … And the wonderful part about the film is we’ve had an opportunity to show it on college campuses. I screened the film at a prison in central Illinois. One of the judges down at the juvenile courts demands that kids who are on probation for a gun violation, that they are required to view “The Interrupters.” And I will tell you that when we showed it at Northwestern, I remember this night well. It was the winter of 2012 … and it was a miserable, miserable night, weather-wise. I mean, it was just stormy, it was cold, it was raining, and we had to turn away a couple hundred people at the door. … I don’t think we could have asked anything more than what we got with this film.
