''The Flagmakers'' is a

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

documentary film about the workers of employee-owned American flag manufacturer

Eder Flag The Eder Flag Manufacturing Company, based in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, is the largest company in America that serves as both a flag and flagpole manufacturer. The company was founded in 1893. In June 2015, following the events of the Charleston chur ...

who manufacture

American flags The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the c ...

and flagpoles. The film focuses on the factory's diverse workforce, including locals, immigrants, and refugees.

Synopsis

''The Flagmakers'' examines the workforce of the Eder Flag factory located in Oak Creek,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, the largest manufacturer of American flags in the nation. Eder Flag's employees are largely

refugee A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.

s and

immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

from all around the world, including Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Africa, and Latin America. The film follows several different employees, examining the meaning behind the American flag through their individual stories. The main narrator, Radica, immigrated from

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

when it was on the brink of war over 30 years ago. She learned English from watching episodes of ''

Married With Children ''Married... with Children'' is an American television sitcom created by Michael G. Moye and Ron Leavitt for Fox. Originally broadcast from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997, it is the longest-lasting live-action sitcom that aired on Fox. ''Marrie ...

''. The film contrasts the optimism of Ali, a war survivor from

Baghdad Baghdad (; ar, بَغْدَاد , ) is the capital of Iraq and the second-largest city in the Arab world after Cairo. It is located on the Tigris near the ruins of the ancient city of Babylon and the Sassanid Persian capital of Ctesiphon ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

, with the after-effects of being attacked at a local store due to being an immigrant. The film explores the hardships felt by Eder Flag's employees, including production manager SugarRay, who reflects on recent tragedies including the

murder of George Floyd On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's n ...

and the

shooting of Jacob Blake On August 23, 2020, Jacob S. Blake, a 29-year-old black man, was shot and seriously injured by police officer Rusten Sheskey in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Sheskey shot Blake in the back four times and the side three times after Blake opened the driv ...

. He is quoted as saying: "Definitely love this country, you know what I mean? But it don’t always love you back." The film also explores the relationships between Barb, a midwesterner who is retiring from Eder due to health issues, and her "diverse immigrant co-workers". Co-director Cynthia Wade said that the Eder Flag factory was a "'visual tapestry' woven with the diversity of its employees and richness of the sewing process for flags". Filming began in 2019, before the start of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, causing the filmmakers to expand the narrative to include the impacts of the COVID-19 on the factory workers. Wade also said Eder Flag has seen an increase in flag orders since the film debuted.

Production

Directed and produced by veteran documentary makers

Cynthia Wade Cynthia Wade is an American television, commercial and film director, producer and cinematographer based in New York City. She has directed documentaries on social issues including '' Shelter Dogs'' in 2003 about animal welfare and ''Freeheld'' i ...

and

Sharon Liese Sharon Liese is an American producer, director, and screenwriter. She created the true crime series '' Pink Collar Crimes'' and developed the show with Jon Kroll at CBS Studios. They planned to shop it out to various networks; however, CBS purchas ...

, ''The Flagmakers'' was also produced by NBA superstar

Giannis Antetokounmpo Giannis Sina Ugo Antetokounmpo (born Adetokunbo; December 6, 1994) is a Greek-Nigerian professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Antetokounmpo's country of origin, in addition to his s ...

Release

''The Flagmakers'' had its world premiere at the 2022

Camden International Film Festival The Camden International Film Festival, stylized as CIFF, is an annual documentary film festival based in Camden, Rockport, and Rockland, Maine, in the United States that takes place on the last weekend in September. Created in 2005 by Benjamin ...

on September 16, 2022. The film was released on the

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

network on December 8, 2022 and on

Disney+ The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment Entertainment is a form of activity that holds the attention and interest of an audience or gives pleasure and deligh ...

on December 21, 2022.

Reception

Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.

said: "In light of the flag's increasing use as a symbol of division, the film offers a heartening reminder of how people from different backgrounds can work together and find common ground." Tony Betti of ''LaughingPlace.com'' said the film offers an "oddly poetic look at one of the most successful manufacturers of American flags" in the United States.

Accolades

Stage adaptation

Shortly after release, ''The Flagmakers'' was optioned to be adapted into a

stage musical Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

, with

Saheem Ali Saheem Ali is a Kenyan theatre director. He is Associate Artistic Director at The Public Theater in New York City. Early life and education Ali was born in Nairobi, Kenya. He earned his undergraduate degree from Northeastern University and he ...

attached as director.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Flagmakers, The 2020s American films 2020s English-language films 2022 documentary films 2022 films 2022 short documentary films 2022 television films American documentary television films American short documentary films Disney documentary films Disney+ original films Documentary films about immigration to the United States Documentary films about refugees News & Documentary Emmy Award winning programs