When a young, single mother in Arkansas learns of an unexpected pregnancy in her already precarious situation, she is forced to travel across state lines in search of an Illinois clinic that will provide an abortion.
That’s the premise of writer, producer and first-time director Nazrin Choudhury’s heart-wrenching 2023 short film, “Red, White and Blue” (Majic Ink Productions). Choudhury penned the story in the span of one morning, shortly after the Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022, which eliminated nearly 50 years of legal precedent protecting the right to abortion access.
“It became personally important to me to use my voice … to tell a very human story that’s grounded in reality and seeks to empower the unseen and unheard voices in our communities who are often unable to speak for themselves,” Choudhury said in a statement.
In the span of 23 minutes, the film painstakingly details the obstacles that Rachel (played by Brittany Snow) must overcome to access an emergency abortion almost 600 miles away.
Living paycheck to paycheck, the waitress and mother of two contemplates the series of events that necessitated this journey — traveling with her daughter in tow (played by Juliet Donenfold) — and the emotional turmoil that follows. In the end, a heartbreaking and unexpected truth emerges that reframes the story.
As Americans head to the polls this week, the Academy-Award nominated film details exactly what’s at stake for those without access to reproductive health care. Former “Full Frontal” host Samantha Bee — a long-time reproductive rights advocate — executive produced the project, stating that now “really is the time” to sound the alarm on reproductive rights as widely as possible, which is why the film is available to watch for free on YouTube through Election Day. Each view will generate a donation to the film’s Purple Parlor Fund, an impact initiative that benefits non-partisan organizations dedicated to social justice and reproductive rights.
During a series of strategic screenings held across the country — including in swing states — to raise awareness about abortion access, stars including Jane Fonda, Lorraine Bracco, Laverne Cox, Chrissy Teigen and Octavia Spencer participated as celebrity hosts. “It’s 23 minutes that I believe you will never forget,” Bracco emphasized to viewers.
Choudhury recently shared her experience making the film and the impact she hopes it will have going into an election where millions of Americans across several states are directly voting on abortion access.
Below is the conversation, which has been edited for brevity and clarity:
Know Your Value: You wrote “Red, White and Blue” in just two hours in the immediate aftermath of the Dobbs decision. Tell us about that moment.
Nazrin Choudhury: I am a mother to two teenage daughters who are inheriting the legacy passed down by this Supreme Court decision that reversed the protections provided by Roe v. Wade for almost a half-century.
I am also one of those women who was “bleeding out” during a third non-viable pregnancy. Luckily, I was not in a parking lot. I was under the care of an incredible medical team of doctors and nurses. Without their skill and medical intervention, I would not be alive today to be mom to my two kids.
In order to combat the feelings of despair and helplessness that so many of us felt, I turned to storytelling as a way of showing the human cost and repercussions of the Supreme Court’s decision for anyone who might need or want an abortion for a myriad of reasons.
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Unfortunately, partisan politics have come into play in the highest court in our land, which is not how the judicial system should work as it pertains to reproductive freedom and reproductive justice.
The history of this country has shown us that the law is not always just. It’s up to us to fight for the next generation of women, and anyone with a uterus, for their right to abortion as health care just as our mothers, aunts and grandmothers fought for us. “Red, White and Blue” is my contribution to that fight.
Know Your Value: This is also your first foray as a film director. What led to that decision and what did you take away from your directorial debut, as well as working with stars like Brittany Snow and Juliet Donenfield?
Nazrin Choudhury: I had always planned to direct early on in my career, but as someone who works extensively in television, I have always been able to maintain a strong authored voice over my work. Film is very much a director’s medium and my lived experience along with all the multiple layers and nuance needed in telling this story through every little detail as well as the performances meant I just knew I had to be the at the helm and in the director’s chair.
Brittany Snow and Juliet Donenfeld were incredible to work with. I don’t think we would have been able to pull this off with the limited time and budget we had to make this without their immense talent, skill and professionalism.
What’s been so reaffirming about working with them, as well as some of my closest ongoing collaborators — director of photography Adam Suschitzky and editor/co-producer Phil McLaughlin — is the safe space they created for me to tell this story. And the reminder that as artists, we’re all looking to tell stories about what makes us human and why we got into the business of storytelling in the first place. I think audiences have also been hungry for the kind of storytelling demonstrated in “Red, White and Blue.”
Know Your Value: In just 23 minutes, the film takes an unexpected — and heart-wrenching turn. How have viewers responded? Any unexpected feedback?
Nazrin Choudhury: The first two people to hear me lay out the story verbally before I sat down to write the script were my two daughters, Iman and Alyssa, who also sing the song “Bloody Typical” that’s playing on the car radio during the road trip scene.
As soon as I had the script, which I wrote fairly quickly, I sent it out to the team I wanted to assemble — all of whom received the same visceral gut punch from the words on the page that you may have heard others discussing.
The finished film has continued to have that same impact on anyone who watches it. It has been personally rewarding to see our audience pick up on the many layers and meaning in the 23 minutes in which we tell this story. We have always said this topic and this story transcends partisanship, even more, politicization. We’ve received so many messages from people telling us that the film has challenged their preconceptions and allowed them to access an often thorny subject with humility and humanity. In some cases, it has helped to change people’s minds and ignited their decision to join the fight to protect our bodily autonomy. My own learning curve in screening this film has come from understanding just how many women are carrying the fact that they had an abortion as a guilty and shameful secret. We need to absolve them of that guilt and shame because it is not theirs to carry. In doing so, we also need to address the widespread trauma that so many of us still have as a result of difficult or unwanted pregnancies. Know Your Value: How have you handled any criticism toward the film? Nazrin Choudhury: Criticism and debate is part of a healthy democracy. It opens a pathway for dialogue and conversation that can be meaningful when we treat each other with respect, humanity and compassion. This film was written to interrogate our own ideas including those of us who think we’re liberal and progressive-minded, as well as those who have an incredibly rigid or extreme perspective. I think that’s what’s been so disappointing about our political system and the landscape since the elections in 2016. We have stopped talking to one another. I welcome any opportunity this film provides for engaging in thoughtful and meaningful exchanges. We can and should all walk a mile in someone else’s shoes. I’m especially thrilled that this film and the subject matter is helping to bring family members back together after several years of polarization. Know Your Value: Who are you speaking to with this feature and what do you hope it will accomplish? Nazrin Choudhury: This film is about a subject matter that has been politicized. And yet, I wrote this film for everyone in America: for the people who have lived it but cannot tell it themselves; for the healthcare workers, doctors and nurses, as well as the reproductive rights and justice organizations who are at the frontlines of this battle in providing and protecting our reproductive rights. This is a thank you for your service as well as a reminder to millions of Americans, including me, who might need to recall President Abraham Lincoln’s words: Ours is a government “Of the people, by the people, for the people.” Our elected officials are there to serve us, not the other way around, and this is the truest definition of democracy that exists in my mind. Know Your Value: The 2024 election will impact women’s rights and health care for years to come. What’s your message to everyone casting a ballot in this election? Nazrin Choudhury: Vote as if your lives and bodies depend on it. It may seem bad enough now, but it will get much worse depending on the way we vote. While we’re not going back, it’s fair to say that in the arena of women’s rights and health care, we have already gone back. Hence the reason for our film, “Red, White and Blue,” as an examination of what’s at stake. We desperately need our male allies — not just women and those who identify differently –to stand up for us. Reproductive rights are on the ballot this year and there is a decade’s worth of work to be done to get us where we need to be. But that work cannot commence unless we make our vote count for the candidate standing up for our reproductive freedom on November 5th. We need to make abortions legal again. Don’t let America bleed out.
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