Description:

The Great American Lie is a documentary film that examines how a US value system built on the extreme masculine ideals of money, power, and control has glorified individualism, institutionalized inequality, and undermined the ability of most Americans to achieve the American Dream. The main topic of this film is arguably one of the most important issues of our time: social and economic immobility. Inequality has been on the rise in America for more than three decades. Middle and low income wages have remained stagnant or decreased while top earners have seen their wages increase 135% since 1979. Today, the top .1% of Americans owns almost as much wealth as the bottom 90%. By bringing the unique perspective of gender to this story, this film expands the conversation around the causes of and solutions to America’s inequality and division. With our history and experience in illuminating and challenging limiting gender narratives in our society, our documentary team is uniquely qualified to tell this story.

Biography:

Jennifer Siebel Newsom is a filmmaker, advocate, and thought leader. After graduating with honors from Stanford University and Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, she wrote, directed, and produced the 2011 award-winning documentary Miss Representation. As a result of Miss Representation’s powerful impact, she launched The Representation Project, a nonprofit organization that uses film and media as a catalyst for cultural transformation. Her second film as a director, The Mask You Live In, had its world premiere at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and explores how America’s narrow definition of masculinity is harming boys, men, and society at large. She also executive produced the Emmy Award-Winning and Academy Award- Nominated documentary The Invisible War, and is an executive producer on the Emmy Award-winning documentary The Hunting Ground. Newsom is the First Partner of California and lives with her husband and their four children in Sacramento, California.