SOLIDARITY

A story of loss and human connection following the parallel lives of a Mexican seamstress and a Lithuanian butcher, as they navigate the immigrant experience in Los Angeles.

BTS photo of Dustin Brown (writer/director) and Elpidia Carrillo (Inés).

OUR JOURNEY

SOLIDARITY began as a short film at Santa Monica College. Against the odds, the short went on to win multiple awards and screen at major festivals including Cannes, BAFTA, and Clermont-Ferrand.

From those humble beginnings, it grew into a full-length feature film.

After completing the AFI Directing Program, writer/director Dustin Brown began expanding the short into a feature – launching a nearly decade-long journey epitomized by filmmaker Marc Duplass’ SXSW keynote: “The cavalry is not coming.” No big studio. No guarantees. Just a deep belief in this story, and the perseverance to make it happen.

When COVID halted the industry, the team pressed forward. Through self-financing and early support from an angel investor, the first portion of the film was shot in June 2021, with enough to cut together a trailer.

the making of

Mark Mannschreck (DP) lining up a shot with Norma Kuhling (Kristina).

That trailer caught the attention of Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Darren Aronofsky, who joined the project as an Executive Producer, along with his company Protozoa Pictures. His creative involvement helped shepherd the film through the next two years of production.

Starring acclaimed Mexican actress Elpidia Carrillo (Predator, Blue Beetle) and Lithuanian actor Mantas Valantiejus, SOLIDARITY has completed post-production with support from Film Independent and is ready for audiences.

Still from SOLIDARITY. The ICE Scene.

WHY NOW

Shot entirely in Los Angeles, one of the film’s pivotal scenes depicts a harrowing ICE raid on a garment factory in the Fashion District. In a striking case of life imitating art, recent ICE raids this past June took place on the very street where the film was shot. Although years in the making, SOLIDARITY arrives as a profoundly timely film in the current political moment.

Art changes hearts. Stories shift culture. SOLIDARITY exists to do both.

BTS photo on the set of "Solidarity". Elpidia Carrillo, Dustin Brown, Montse Hernandez.
People working at sewing machines in a factory with blue fabric and industrial equipment.
Two women conversing in a textile factory, one with curly black hair smiling and wearing a black top, the other with blonde hair wearing a gray beanie and blue hoodie, surrounded by blue fabric and sewing machines.
Film crew filming a scene outdoors with two actors, one kneeling and one standing, on a sidewalk near apartment buildings and trees.
Man operating a professional video camera outdoors with others around him, including a person in a light gray fleece jacket and camouflage cap looking at a mobile device, and a brick building in the background.
Four people posing together inside a clothing store or warehouse, with blue shirts hanging on racks behind them. They are smiling and standing close to each other.
A film crew setting up a shot at night with a man sitting in front of a camera on a dolly, blue smoke or fog in the background, and a person adjusting equipment nearby, all in a parking lot.
A woman walking alone on a sidewalk at night, wearing a black hoodie and carrying a colorful bag, with a brightly lit storefront behind her.
Three people close together, two women and one man, posing for a photo in a dimly lit indoor setting, all smiling.
Inside a neon-lit storefront with a man standing behind the counter, looking outside. The sign above reads 'Recien Echo Todos Los Dias.' The scene appears to be at night with reflections on the glass.
A woman in a wedding dress and veil stands behind a glass window, looking at the camera with her hands raised and her palms flat against the glass.
An underground metro train at a station platform, with a stainless steel exterior and a red stripe, indicating it is a metro train, with a sign showing accessibility features. The platform has yellow tactile paving for safety.
Young man with long hair wearing Sony headphones and a black face mask, looking at a large monitor screen in a production or studio setting.
A woman and a man sitting in a church pew, looking serious and pensive, with stained glass windows in the background.
A film crew filming on a beach, with a person running in the background near the ocean.
Dustin Brown, writer/director

the TEAM

Kaiulani Bush, Producer

DUSTIN BROWN
Writer/Director

KAIULANI BUSH
Producer

Daniel Leighton, Producer
Cat Hobbs, Producer

DANIEL LEIGHTON
Producer

CAT HOBBS
Producer

Darren Aronofsky, Executive Producer
Mark Mannschreck, Cinematographer

DARREN ARONOFSKY
Executive Producer

MARK MANNSCHRECK
Cinematographer

Clarisa Garcia-Fresco, Production Designer
Taylor Lipari-Hassett, Composer

CLARISA GARCIA-FRESCO
Production Designer

TAYLOR LIPARI-HASSETT
Composer

the CAST

Elpidia Carrillo, Inés
Mantas Valantiejus, Tomas

ELPIDIA CARRILLO
Inés

MANTAS VALANTIEJUS
Tomas

Montse Hernandez, Emilia
Norma Kuhling, Kristina

MONTSE HERNANDEZ
Emilia

NORMA KUHLING
Kristina

Carlos Miranda, Arean
Daniel Mora, Miguel

CARLOS MIRANDA
Arean

DANIEL MORA
Miguel

Michael Harney, Frank
Todd Stashwick, Eric

MICHAEL HARNEY
Frank

TODD STASHWICK
Eric