Filmmaker: Tod Lending
Runtime: 98 minutes
Synopsis:
The largely invisible and often crushing struggles of young African-American men come vividly – and heroically – to life in All the Difference, which traces the paths of two teens from the South Side of Chicago who dream of graduating from college. Statistics predict that Robert and Krishaun will drop out of high school, but they have other plans. Oscar® nominated producer/director Tod Lending’s intimate film, executive produced by author Wes Moore, follows the young men though five years of hard work, sacrifice, setbacks and uncertainty. As they discover support from family, teachers and mentors makes all the difference in defying the odds.
About the Filmmaker
Mr. Lending is an Academy Award® nominated and national Emmy winning producer/director/cinematographer whose work has aired nationally on ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, HBO, A&E, Al Jazeera; has been screened theatrically and awarded at national and international festivals; and has been televised internationally throughout Europe and Asia. His work has inspired the creation and passing of federal legislation (The Legacy Act/American Dream Act) and has garnered numerous major grants from foundations including the MacArthur Foundation, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Ford Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, ITVS, NEH, US Office of Education, Driehaus Foundation, Sundance Institute and Wallace Foundation. He was a University of Maryland Journalism Fellow in Child and Family Policy, an advisor at the Sundance Institute, and is the president and founder of Nomadic Pictures, a documentary film production company based in Chicago. He is also the director of Ethno Pictures, a nonprofit film company that produces and distributes documentary films.