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union

A FILM BY STEPHEN MAING AND BRETT STORY

Up against one of the most powerful companies on the planet, a group of Amazon workers embark on an unprecedented campaign to unionize their warehouse in Staten Island, New York.

ACADEMY AWARDS SHORTLIST - BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
WINNER - CINEMA EYE HONORS, OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION
WINNER - SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL, SPECIAL JURY PRIZE
NOMINEE - GOTHAM AWARDS, BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
NOMINEE - CINEMA EYE HONORS, OUTSTANDING DIRECTION
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“Astounding, rebellious… brilliant.”

The New York Times

SYNOPSIS

Through intimate cinema vérité, UNION chronicles the extraordinary efforts of an unlikely group of warehouse workers as they launch a grassroots union campaign at an Amazon fulfillment center in Staten Island, New York. Led by the charismatic but underestimated Chris Smalls, the diverse band of workers start the Amazon Labor Union (ALU) and embark on a journey against one of the largest and most powerful companies in the world. The odds are stacked against them, as the group finds itself up against a tech industry giant with unlimited resources, without major support from national unions or politicians, and while navigating internal divisions within their own ranks. Filmmakers Brett Story and Stephen Maing document the struggle from day one, offering a gripping human drama about the fight for power and dignity in today's globalized economic landscape.

Creative Team

Stephen Maing

(
Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Editor
)

Brett Story

(
Director, Producer
)

Mars Verrone

(
Producer, p.g.a.
)

Samantha Curley

(
Producer, p.g.a.
)

Martin DiCicco

(
Cinematographer, Producer
)

Blair McClendon

(
Editor
)

Malika Zouhali-Worrall

(
Editor
)

Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe

(
Composer
)

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS

Executive Producers
Jenny Raskin
Lauren Haber
Geralyn White Dreyfous
The Villa Family
David Levine
Jessica Grimshaw
Nick Shumaker
Dawn Olmstead
Adam McKay
Todd Schulman
Co-Executive Producers
Kelsey Koenig
Barbara & Eric Dobkin
Paula Froehle & Steve Cohen
Natasha & David Dolby
Meryl Metni
Pierre Hauser
Peter Palandjian
Chelsea Halligan
Ryan Parker
Alexander Carpenter
Andrew Neel

Press

Indiewire

David Ehrlich

“A vital and urgent portrait of labor organizing and its enduring possibility."

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Slate

Sam Adams

"An essential document of the 21st-century labor movement."

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The New York Times

Alissa Wilkinson

"It is hard to capture, on film, the often exhausting work of organizing workplace labor... but UNION does it."

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LOS ANGELES TIMES

Jen Yamato

"A powerful reminder of what’s at stake when companies reduce workers to numbers on a balance sheet."

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The Hollywood Reporter

Daniel Fienberg

“A nuanced portrait of the challenges of leadership and a revealing celebration of the values of persistence, solidarity and free weed.”

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VULTURE

Alison Willmore

"Undeniably political in its focus while being artful and observational in its approach... Simmers like a present-day techno-thriller."

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THE NEW YORKER

Doreen St. Félix

"A document of solidarity, in which the scandal of the gig-economy model registers on a human scale."

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The Nation

Ella Fanger

"Grapples with what it means to tell an underdog story without a satisfying ending."

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Rolling Stone

David Fear

"As much a portrait of a struggle as it is a win."

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Take Action

With 1.5 million employees globally, Amazon is setting the standard for a future of work defined by automation, surveillance, lack of safety, precarity, and social isolation. Worker organizing at Amazon is critical for defining our economic and political futures. This single company controls much of the internet’s infrastructure, dictates online retail globally, sells cloud services to militaries around the globe, has hollowed out the main streets of towns and cities across the United States, produces a massive carbon footprint, and undermines democracy to serve its own corporate interests.

Building a powerful labor movement to reign in the power of Amazon and other corporations is one of the key existential struggles of our time. Check out our “Take Action” page for resources to learn more and join the fight. If you’d like to partner with us on our impact and distribution campaign, email team@unionthefilm.com.  

UNION is proud to partner with a number of organizations working at the frontlines of the global labor movement.

Learn more about their efforts HERE: