ABOUT THE PROJECT

LOGLINE
An intimate look into America’s most progressive criminal justice reformer, Chesa Boudin, as he and his office face the most well-funded opposition to a District Attorney’s policies in US history.

SYNOPSIS
CHESA BOUDIN: RIPTIDE presents the exclusive, inside story behind the most embattled District Attorney’s Office in American history—and the only one to have ever been successfully recalled from office.

Fighting a war on two fronts, San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin, his staff, and campaign team go up against the most expensive local recall campaign ever, a campaign paid for by conservative billionaires and backed by the San Francisco Police Union, both looking to undo the progressive reforms that Boudin and his staff have implemented.

Inside the DA’s Office, we witness Boudin and his staff fight one of the highest funded police departments in the country as it attempts to subvert Boudin’s efforts to hold them accountable. In addition, relentless attacks from both local and national press keep Boudin’s team on the constant defensive while they somehow simultaneously make good on their promises of criminal justice reform promised to voters.

Meanwhile, finding himself suddenly in campaign mode only halfway through his term, he hits the streets to meet voters face-to-face, intercepting them as they commute to work and even hijacking a parade he wasn’t invited to (where he receives both cheers and jeers). He successfully flips nearly every recall supporter he speaks to directly, but as the election approaches, there’s only so much time to undo the onslaught of misinformation that the Recall Campaign has pumped millions of dollars into.

With explosive interactions between the opposing campaigns and direct access to the key players, CHESA BOUDIN: RIPTIDE offers a raw, firsthand look at the wildest political fray ever captured in a documentary and an essential look at modern American politics.

PROJECT TYPE Documentary Feature

DIRECTOR John Maringouin
PRODUCER Sean Gillane