Bullhorn Films is a film production company that was created in response to the protests following the murder of George Floyd and subsequent protests regarding alleged cases of police brutality. It was created to document the activities of far-left activist organizations within the protests and their advocacy in response to so-called systemic oppression of ethnic minorities. ¹

Between May 2020 and October 2022, Bullhorn Films has published over 30 short films, many of which will be compiled into a long-form documentary, reporting on the activities of The People’s Revolution. ² The People’s Revolution is a left-of-center activist group that “demands” restrictions on law enforcement hiring and advocates for using ten percent of police department’s existing budgets to hire social workers instead of police officers due to alleged police brutality and misconduct. ³

Background

Bullhorn Films was founded by Sean Kafer and Madeleine Schweitzer in 2020 to document the protests in response to the murder of George Floyd and other alleged cases of police brutality and misconduct. It is a partner organization of the anti-capitalist organization Midcoast MKE and was officially formed after Kafer and Schweitzer were asked by Khalil Coleman of The People’s Revolution to continue filming their activities in the protests, leading to multiple films and documentaries about the group. ^{4 5}

While discussing Bullhorn Films’ cornerstone project, Won’t Stop, Kafer said, “The concentration of our film will be on the origin of The People’s Revolution and the summer in Wauwatosa — what it was like to have them experience the kind of resistance they had in the suburbs.” ⁶

The People’s Revolution

The People’s Revolution is an activist organization that advocates for a list of demands in response to alleged police brutality and systemic oppression. Its list of demands includes freezing new hires of police officers and “refunding” ten percent of police department budgets towards social services, having law enforcement get rid of its military equipment, ending qualified immunity for law enforcement officers, and instituting requirements for police officers to have a bachelor’s degree in a list of majors ranging from LatinX Studies to Criminal Justice. It also includes various demands aimed at promoting accountability from law enforcement and preventing unethical practices, such as using choke holds. ⁷

Films

As of October 2022, Bullhorn Films is also in the process of producing two documentaries tracking the activities of The People’s Revolution during the Black Lives Matter-inspired protests following the murder of George Floyd in May 2020. ^{8 9} The two documentaries, titled Volume Up and Won’t Stop, are fiscally sponsored projects of Milwaukee Film, a nonprofit organization, making donations to the films tax deductible. ^{10 11} Milwaukee Film is an arts organization that publishes films with a focus on “equity” to address race and other social issues. ^{12 13}

As of October 2022, Bullhorn Films is in the process of producing a film titled Time & Place. It describes the film’s subject matter as: “Two young dreamers struggle to find their purpose and break free from the shackles of poverty, violence, and predetermined hopelessness in Milwaukee’s inner city.” ¹⁴

People

Sean Kafer is a co-founder of Bullhorn Films and program director of docUWM, a filmmaking and lecturing program through the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. ¹⁵

1. Holloway, Michael. “Film: Bullhorn Films Documents Protests.” Urban Milwaukee. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2021/05/20/film-bullhorn-films-documents-protests/.
2. Holloway, Michael. “Film: Bullhorn Films Documents Protests.” Urban Milwaukee. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2021/05/20/film-bullhorn-films-documents-protests/.
3. “The Peoples Revolution.” The Peoples Revolution. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.tpr-mke.com/the-peoples-demands.
4. “Resources.” MIDCOAST Collective. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://www.midcoastcollective.org/resources.
5. Holloway, Michael. “Film: Bullhorn Films Documents Protests.” Urban Milwaukee. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2021/05/20/film-bullhorn-films-documents-protests/.
6. Holloway, Michael. “Film: Bullhorn Films Documents Protests.” Urban Milwaukee. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://urbanmilwaukee.com/2021/05/20/film-bullhorn-films-documents-protests/.
7. “The Peoples Revolution.” The Peoples Revolution. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.tpr-mke.com/the-peoples-demands.
8. “Films.” Bullhorn Films. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.bullhornfilms.com/about.
9. “Won’t Stop.” Bullhorn Films. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.bullhornfilms.com/wontstop.
10. “Donate to Won’t Stop.” Bullhorn Films. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.bullhornfilms.com/donatetowontstop.
11. “Donate: Volume-Up.” volume. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.volumeupfilm.com/donate.
12. “Call for Entries – 2022 Milwaukee Film Festival: Milwaukee Film.” MKEFilm. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://mkefilm.org/for-filmmakers/call-for-entries.
13. “EQUITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION.” Milwaukee Film. Accessed October 31, 2022. https://mkefilm.org/equity.
14. “Time & Place.” Bullhorn Films. Accessed October 30, 2022. https://www.bullhornfilms.com/timeandplace.
15. ^[1] “Sean Kafer – UW-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts.” Peck School of the Arts, August 29, 2022. https://uwm.edu/arts/directory/kafer-sean/.