Crawford, USA

What happens to the 705 residents of Crawford, Texas when George W. Bush decides to call it "home"? This is a small town with a big story -- a microcosm of the last seven years. When Bush moves in, the insular town explodes overnight with flocking press, droves of tourists and booming opportunity. While the President uses their town as the perfect set-piece to project a folksy image, Crawford sees behind the scenes. Soon, the town's compelling characters feel the human impact of political stagecraft. The spotlight exacerbates tensions between conformity and freethinking, pushing a progressive teacher and her favorite student to the brink -- and beyond.

In 2004, the town newspaper endorses Kerry; it's promptly boycotted. By 2005, the President's mounting problems follow him home, where 20,000 protestors do battle in Crawford's tiny streets. Now, tourist traffic has stopped. The town's boom is busting like the Presidency itself and left to pick up the pieces are the real people of Crawford. Their lives are changed forever. And their story is our own.

DAVID MODIGLIANI (Producer/Director) makes film and theater at the intersection of the personal and political. He recently concluded his three-year fellowship at the Michener Center for Writers with the Austin production of his play, WIRELESS-LESS (nominated by the Austin Critics Table for “Best New Play.”) In May 2006, he produced and directed a 30 second TV spot for Austin mayor Will Wynn, which aired on all local networks. In July, 2006 his first documentary film, BAREFOOT AT BEETLEBUNG was screened on Martha’s Vineyard. He has a BA from Harvard University and an MFA from UT Austin.