Narrated by Richard Gere and shot over 15 years, Father Joe provides unprecedented access into the hidden world of the Bangkok slums and the fight to save homes and livelihood, despite the corruption, drugs, violence, child sex trafficking, AIDS/HIV, fires and devastating floods.
50 years ago, an unconventional young priest chose the poorest part of Thailand to set up a pre-school and so began a life-long love affair with the people in the slums of Bangkok.A volatile and complex character, Irish/American Catholic priest, Father Joe Maier, has over the years provided education for over 90,000 slum children and has built or rebuilt over 10,000 slum homes.
Shot over 15 years, Father Joe provides unprecedented access and an intimate look into the hidden world of the slums and the fight to save their homes and livelihood, despite the corruption, drugs, violence, child sex trafficking, AIDS/HIV, and the external impact of climate change that cause devastating floods, all the while fighting the big corporates who want to displace the strong close-knit community who keep each other alive.
He is much revered, not only to those who live in the slums, but by such humanitarian luminaries as Reverend Desmond Tutu and Mother Teresa and even the New York Times has featured his extraordinary life's work. He has stared evil in the face and put his life in danger numerous times, by committing his life to protecting, educating, and empowering the forgotten children of the slums. But he's running out of time.
Now 86 years old, he is a modern-day King Lear, aging and desperate to continue the fight to preserve all he has worked for over the past five decades. This is the story of a man who never gives in to the hopelessness of the slums but finds instead hope in the people of his cherished community, and a testament that one man can really make a difference.
Unique Access to Character
Father Joe is a very volatile and complex character. A rogue priest who never quite fit within the conventions of the Catholic Church, doggedly determined and dedicated, he has learnt the necessity of humility, bravery, and bending the rules in an unlawful, hostile land to survive.When he first arrived in Bangkok, he drank a bottle of whisky a day to cope with his demons of a troubled childhood as he learned to navigate the relentless daily challenges in the unforgiving and violent environment of the slums - he lived for 20 years in a small shack above the slaughterhouse, where the pigs were slaughtered.
Unique Access to the Hidden World of the Slums
Access is almost impossible, especially if you have a camera.Through years of building trust, the filmmaker has formed an unlikely friendship with Father Joe, who in turn had to build trust with the community in the slums, but has now opened the locked gate to a world where civilians are not invited, trusted, or safe. Part tour guide, part protector, Father Joe has the necessary alliances in the most unlikely places.
Footage acquired over the course of 15 years provides the documentary with a time capsule of the changing face of the slums. We have filmed fires, floods, famine and plagues, riots in the streets, people dying, people living with AIDS and then Covid. The longevity of the project has allowed characters and themes to develop and evolve much like Hoop Dreams and Michael Apted’s 7 Up Series. We see abandoned 12-year-old triplets sold by their grandmother for a case of whisky, forgotten children growing up to graduate from university, and HIV/AIDS children growing up to become successful adults in commerce and business. We see other children who once struggled and suffered, now aspiring and happy young adults who have a bright future.
Four animation sequences created from Father Joes' published books of short stories, portray some of the stories which are too intense and confronting to be included in the live action sequences, such as the girls who are sex trafficked, even by their own parents.
“The story of Father Joe and the Bangkok squatter land he calls holy is a critical chapter in the modern-day memoirs of humankind.”
- Reverend Desmond M. Tutu, Archbishop of Cape Town.
The story is particularly relevant today for both a local and global audience.This film can be targeted to a general public audience (35+)interested in humanitarian issues as well as a faith-based audience.Faith-based films have a huge following worldwide - a genre of filmmaking that has amassed almost $3 billion since 2000, according to Box Office Mojo with The Sound of Freedom recently passing the $150 million mark.An unlikely market for this film is fast emerging in China as affluent and well-travelled Chinese are discovering the Christian faith. This long-term potential audience is in the hundreds of millions.An Outreach program targeting schools and colleges will also be made available including an ATOM Study Guide, linked to the school curriculum.
Father Joe has achieved what few of us could ever hope to imagine. The documentary will serve as his legacy and a reminder that one person really can make a difference. Please help us to continue the legacy that Father Joe began 50 years ago by helping us to complete this very important and vital film.