Press

All of Us (formerly titled Mehret)

Previous Pureland Films

Press Kits

Heart and Soul, June 2007

"If you give people small steps, it can lead to big changes in their lives."

—MEHRET MANDEFRO

Brooklyn Courier,
September 2006

"The finished film can be used as a tool for activists who are mobilizing around the issue now."

—REVA GOLDBERG

Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 2006

"Calling it 'people-powered filmmaking,' the filmmakers are forming strategic alliances with New York doctors and non-profit organizations--groups who can see the value in having a vehicle not just to spread the message but to make it cool and palatable."

The Hollywood Reporter,
July 2001

Abt rips your heart out and then stomps on it. The director does an excellent job, especially considering how impossibly complex the subject's problems are. TAKE IT FROM ME is a desperate ride."

—IRV LETOFSKY

Newton Magazine

"When the message is too heavy-handed, the story can lose its grip on the audience. The story has to come first and the message has to become evident from the characters' actions."

—REVA GOLDBERG

The New York Times, July 2001

"'Take it From Me' illuminates the complexity of poverty and the erroneous simplicity of much government policy. With sympathy and without condescension toward her subjects, Emily Abt captures the exhausting disparity between their hopeful ambitions and their actual prospects. She presents the women in vivid vignettes that convey their hard lives. The interviews are sensitive, the imagery is bleak. A heartfelt documentary . . ."

—JULIE SALAMON

People, July 2001

"Emily Abt's worthwhile "Take it From Me" goes behind the numbers for a close-up look at individual New Yorkers struggling with poverty and the loss of public assistance. Here are scenes with more emotional impact than a dozen government reports. The feeling here always seem true. Bottom line: Take it seriously."

—TERRY KELLEHER

Vibe, April 2002

"Emily Abt and her company created Take it From Me, a compelling documentary about four women trying to get off welfare. It was the highlight of last year's POV series on PBS."

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