From the "Biz" Archives:

Production Completed On Irving's "Chain Gang'

by Mary Sampson

Xachery Irving's documentary "American Chain Gang" has completed post production and will be shown to a number of distribution channels in the next couple of months. The 16mm feature length film documents the experiences of the men and women of the recently revived chain gang prison programs and examines the historical, moral, and political impact of this policy.

During the shoot, which takes place in an Arizona jail and an Alabama prison, Irving's crew witnessed a prison riot, got death threats by camera-phobic inmates, and found themselves left inside the prison with no protection during a shift change by the guards.

The budget (obtained by personal credit card maxing, in-kind services via a Roy Dean grant and the generosity of vendors and facilities) came in at around $230,000. Post production services were provided by Digital Media of Oregon which provides all the post for four films each year as part of their AVID Feature Film Camp.

Irving has appointments to show the film to HBO, The Learning Channel, Channel 4 UK, and a number of theatrical distribution companies. He plans to start the festival circuit with a submission to the Sundance Film Festival.

[More information about "American Chain Gang" can be obtained by contacting Irving at 212.737.5012. For more on Digital Media's Avid Feature Film Camp, hit the website @ <http://www.DMEC.com>]