Western District Documentary
Tax deductible
From Award-Winning Historical Playwright, Dr. Brandon Chase Goldsmith, & Award-Winning Western Film Producer, Amber Lindley, comes a new documentary film project to begin principal photography in Spring 2020. Newly discovered documents found in Ft. Smith, Arkansas (A True West Magazine’s 2020 top western city) reveal the never-before-told history of the 1871-72 Western District; the largest court in the entire U.S.
FORGET EVERYTHING you knew about western history! The books weren’t telling you the truth!
(*Photo by Brenda Yelvington)
You've never read about the deadliest gunfight in the wild west! OR Wyatt Earp’s arrest, conviction & prison escape. The Goingsnake Tragedy?… told this time with the help of the modern-day Cherokee Nation. All these events happened on the Arkansas/Oklahoma border and Indian Territory. This federal court jurisdiction and frontier area were known simply as “Hell on the Border!”
The Western District Court was so corrupt, Congress voted to abolish it. The judge was TAKING BRIBES. The U.S. Marshals were stealing the equivalent of 8 million dollars in today’s money. MYSTERIOUS DEATHS and a cover up linked to Washington D.C. Innocent Native Americans rounded up and arrested, a price per head paid for by depraved politicians and involving ordinary citizens!
To re-write this history, we need your help!
A portion of the funding of this new documentary film will be provided by the support of 100% tax deductible donations. Dr. Goldsmith & Mrs. Lindley are collaborating with the Ft. Smith Historical Society. Your donations for the documentary will be made to Ft. Smith Historical Society and used in film production. A percentage of the film’s revenue will go to the historical society to continue western history education, historical documentation and discoveries, and preservation.
The Discovery
Four years ago, Dr. Goldsmith discovered literally a “Hole in the Wall” in an old building in downtown Ft. Smith. The property, now occupied by a popular fine dining restaurant (21 West End) was once a saloon AND the federal court house in the 19th century! This began a journey that revealed a cover up confirmed by documents that have been hiding for over a 100 years… and even some secrets hidden in plain site at the Library of Congress.
On May 8th, 1871 in only 14 months and twenty days, the Western Court jurisdiction becomes the most corrupt courthouse in the entire United States.
( *archive historical photo)
The Deputies were ROBBING prisoners. The Local Lawyers were STEALING defendants’ horses. The Secret Service was chased out of town under threat of ASSASSINATION and the Grand Jury assembled to review these crimes was MANIPULATED to avoid prosecution.
All of this corruption lead to the federal appointment of the infamous “Hanging Judge” Isaac C. Parker whose job was to clean up the Western District Court of Arkansas.
In 2018, Dr. Goldsmith wrote, produced, and published The Western District play and book based on his research digging into historical archives, museum backrooms, private collections and over 500 newly discovered pages of Congressional Records.
The play garnered sold out performances and both public and critical acclaim!
The Documentary
Now, Dr. Goldsmith and Mrs. Lindley have secured, and are continuing to secure, an award winning production team, legal team, academics, historians and consultants to bring this story from stage to screen.
The filmmakers have already begun initial casting steps for SAG AFTRA actors and A-List Talent to narrate the film. An original musical composition by an Emmy Award Winning composer, & licensed and local artists’ music will play a huge part in the overall story-telling.
This project will be filmed ON LOCATION at some of the exact historical spots where the discoveries led. Arkansas’s River Valley and Northwest areas are growing a national reputation for film production. Recently, HBO’s True Detective utilized the talented cast, crews and communities in this area, as will our documentary.
( *Photos by Brenda Yelvington)
The Development
Work is in motion for the development stage of The Western District Documentary. Thousands of hours of academic research, some live action historical reenactments, story boarding and screenplay writing has begun. Tests for utilizing 3D special effects and animation designed specifically to make this old west story come alive have already started.
3D Animated Photo Test
(See the two Men & Wagon transformed into 3D and the horse move with sound effects)
*The Animated Photos and Photo Realistic 3D Model will be donated to local Historical Societies and Museums.
Filmmakers are working with local and national governments, community organizations, The Cherokee Nation Film Office, historical societies, cinema societies, the University of Arkansas, U of A Ft. Smith, also other public institutions and foundations to insure the ACCURACY and INTEGRITY of the information that will be presented for the first time ever on screen.
(* Photo by Phillip Person)
Be part of the reveal and donate now!
Movie Credit Underwriter Level
Posse $25 - $100
Deputy $250 - $1000
Marshal $1,500 - $3,000
Associate Producer $5,000 - $15,000
Executive Producer $25,000+
While, the filmmakers are exploring all avenues of distribution, they are preparing for a possible PBS acquisition. Please see below for further details regarding PBS standards and film funding.
BECOME AN UNDERWRITER
We are following PBS Funding Standards and Practices. PBS defines an "underwriter" as a third party that has voluntarily contributed cash to finance, in whole or in part, the production or acquisition of a PBS program…Federal law requires that those who helped pay for a broadcast be disclosed on the air at the time off the broadcast. Therefore, we identify all of the program underwriters in the underwriting credit pod (For More See Below).
NO INVESTORS
Investment partners, licensing partners and other distribution entities who have provided cash for the purchase of rights other than broadcast rights on PBS are not underwriters and do not get acknowledgement on air -but must be revealed on the PAA.
NO ANONYMOUS DONORS
All individuals who provide funding, including through crowdfunding campaigns, must be identified to PBS by their legal name (not a pseudonym or online username). Producers should make this requirement clear at the outset of any crowdfunding campaigns to ensure that funding is not raised from anonymous contributors.
PBS Standards and Practices
No standard underwriting credit pod may be more than 60-seconds in length. No standard single underwriter may receive more than a 15- second credit. The category of Premier Sponsorship is intended to recognize the extraordinarily generous corporate underwriter whose support has made possible certain costly programs. The maximum allowable credit for a Premier Sponsor is 30 seconds. The aggregate time for acknowledging corporate contributions in any underwriting pod containing a Premier Sponsor must not exceed 60 seconds; acknowledgments of corporate and non-corporate funding together must not exceed 90 seconds.
Whenever one underwriter is mentioned, all must be acknowledged. Consequently, the underwriting credit pod at the beginning and end of the program will, in most cases, be the same length. The credits, however, need not be identical. For example, at the top of the program, an underwriter duly identified may feature one product or service and, at the bottom, another product or service.
The Funding pod must start by three minutes into the program. The top underwriting credit pod should be placed after a program open or program tease in order to separate national underwriting from local underwriting.
There is no limit on the number of funders that may contribute to content. If there are more funders than can reasonably be conveyed to the audience in the time available (e.g., crowdfunding campaigns), then the producer should identify the major funders individually and the remainder generally, with a statement advising the viewer that a complete funder list is available.
https://www.efortsmith.com/editor-picks/the-western-district-project-moves-from-stage-to-screen
https://www.swtimes.com/news/20200130/aampp-supports-local-film
https://www.swtimes.com/news/20200207/fort-smith-named-no-5-true-western-town
FORGET EVERYTHING you knew about western history! The books weren’t telling you the truth!
(*Photo by Brenda Yelvington)You've never read about the deadliest gunfight in the wild west! OR Wyatt Earp’s arrest, conviction & prison escape. The Goingsnake Tragedy?… told this time with the help of the modern-day Cherokee Nation. All these events happened on the Arkansas/Oklahoma border and Indian Territory. This federal court jurisdiction and frontier area were known simply as “Hell on the Border!”
The Western District Court was so corrupt, Congress voted to abolish it. The judge was TAKING BRIBES. The U.S. Marshals were stealing the equivalent of 8 million dollars in today’s money. MYSTERIOUS DEATHS and a cover up linked to Washington D.C. Innocent Native Americans rounded up and arrested, a price per head paid for by depraved politicians and involving ordinary citizens!
To re-write this history, we need your help!
A portion of the funding of this new documentary film will be provided by the support of 100% tax deductible donations. Dr. Goldsmith & Mrs. Lindley are collaborating with the Ft. Smith Historical Society. Your donations for the documentary will be made to Ft. Smith Historical Society and used in film production. A percentage of the film’s revenue will go to the historical society to continue western history education, historical documentation and discoveries, and preservation.
The DiscoveryFour years ago, Dr. Goldsmith discovered literally a “Hole in the Wall” in an old building in downtown Ft. Smith. The property, now occupied by a popular fine dining restaurant (21 West End) was once a saloon AND the federal court house in the 19th century! This began a journey that revealed a cover up confirmed by documents that have been hiding for over a 100 years… and even some secrets hidden in plain site at the Library of Congress.
On May 8th, 1871 in only 14 months and twenty days, the Western Court jurisdiction becomes the most corrupt courthouse in the entire United States.
( *archive historical photo)The Deputies were ROBBING prisoners. The Local Lawyers were STEALING defendants’ horses. The Secret Service was chased out of town under threat of ASSASSINATION and the Grand Jury assembled to review these crimes was MANIPULATED to avoid prosecution.
All of this corruption lead to the federal appointment of the infamous “Hanging Judge” Isaac C. Parker whose job was to clean up the Western District Court of Arkansas.
In 2018, Dr. Goldsmith wrote, produced, and published The Western District play and book based on his research digging into historical archives, museum backrooms, private collections and over 500 newly discovered pages of Congressional Records.
The play garnered sold out performances and both public and critical acclaim!The Documentary
Now, Dr. Goldsmith and Mrs. Lindley have secured, and are continuing to secure, an award winning production team, legal team, academics, historians and consultants to bring this story from stage to screen.
The filmmakers have already begun initial casting steps for SAG AFTRA actors and A-List Talent to narrate the film. An original musical composition by an Emmy Award Winning composer, & licensed and local artists’ music will play a huge part in the overall story-telling.
This project will be filmed ON LOCATION at some of the exact historical spots where the discoveries led. Arkansas’s River Valley and Northwest areas are growing a national reputation for film production. Recently, HBO’s True Detective utilized the talented cast, crews and communities in this area, as will our documentary.
( *Photos by Brenda Yelvington)The Development
Work is in motion for the development stage of The Western District Documentary. Thousands of hours of academic research, some live action historical reenactments, story boarding and screenplay writing has begun. Tests for utilizing 3D special effects and animation designed specifically to make this old west story come alive have already started.
3D Animated Photo Test
(See the two Men & Wagon transformed into 3D and the horse move with sound effects)
*The Animated Photos and Photo Realistic 3D Model will be donated to local Historical Societies and Museums.
Filmmakers are working with local and national governments, community organizations, The Cherokee Nation Film Office, historical societies, cinema societies, the University of Arkansas, U of A Ft. Smith, also other public institutions and foundations to insure the ACCURACY and INTEGRITY of the information that will be presented for the first time ever on screen.
(* Photo by Phillip Person)Be part of the reveal and donate now!
Movie Credit Underwriter Level
Posse $25 - $100
Deputy $250 - $1000
Marshal $1,500 - $3,000
Associate Producer $5,000 - $15,000
Executive Producer $25,000+
While, the filmmakers are exploring all avenues of distribution, they are preparing for a possible PBS acquisition. Please see below for further details regarding PBS standards and film funding.
BECOME AN UNDERWRITER
We are following PBS Funding Standards and Practices. PBS defines an "underwriter" as a third party that has voluntarily contributed cash to finance, in whole or in part, the production or acquisition of a PBS program…Federal law requires that those who helped pay for a broadcast be disclosed on the air at the time off the broadcast. Therefore, we identify all of the program underwriters in the underwriting credit pod (For More See Below).
NO INVESTORS
Investment partners, licensing partners and other distribution entities who have provided cash for the purchase of rights other than broadcast rights on PBS are not underwriters and do not get acknowledgement on air -but must be revealed on the PAA.
NO ANONYMOUS DONORS
All individuals who provide funding, including through crowdfunding campaigns, must be identified to PBS by their legal name (not a pseudonym or online username). Producers should make this requirement clear at the outset of any crowdfunding campaigns to ensure that funding is not raised from anonymous contributors.
PBS Standards and Practices
No standard underwriting credit pod may be more than 60-seconds in length. No standard single underwriter may receive more than a 15- second credit. The category of Premier Sponsorship is intended to recognize the extraordinarily generous corporate underwriter whose support has made possible certain costly programs. The maximum allowable credit for a Premier Sponsor is 30 seconds. The aggregate time for acknowledging corporate contributions in any underwriting pod containing a Premier Sponsor must not exceed 60 seconds; acknowledgments of corporate and non-corporate funding together must not exceed 90 seconds.
Whenever one underwriter is mentioned, all must be acknowledged. Consequently, the underwriting credit pod at the beginning and end of the program will, in most cases, be the same length. The credits, however, need not be identical. For example, at the top of the program, an underwriter duly identified may feature one product or service and, at the bottom, another product or service.
The Funding pod must start by three minutes into the program. The top underwriting credit pod should be placed after a program open or program tease in order to separate national underwriting from local underwriting.
There is no limit on the number of funders that may contribute to content. If there are more funders than can reasonably be conveyed to the audience in the time available (e.g., crowdfunding campaigns), then the producer should identify the major funders individually and the remainder generally, with a statement advising the viewer that a complete funder list is available.
https://www.efortsmith.com/editor-picks/the-western-district-project-moves-from-stage-to-screen
https://www.swtimes.com/news/20200130/aampp-supports-local-film
https://www.swtimes.com/news/20200207/fort-smith-named-no-5-true-western-town
Fundraising team (2)
Brandon Chase Goldsmith
Organizer
Fort Smith, AR
Fort Smith Historical Society Inc.
Beneficiary
Amber Lindley
Team member