How Long Is “Better This World”?

Brad Crowder and David McKay were a pair of close friends from Midland, Texas who were ordinary kids until the American invasion of Iraq prompted them to speak out about their leftist political beliefs. As they became more interested in activism, Crowder and McKay met Brandon Darby, an organizer who had earned a reputation for his work with displaced families following Hurricane Katrina. The young men were impressed enough to join up with Darby for a series of protests planned for the 2008 Republican National Convention in Minneapolis. Brandon encouraged his charges to be ready for the possibility of aggressive confrontations with police and security officers, and his statements suggested he was prepping his group for battle more than peaceful protest. At the convention, Crowder and McKay were arrested when it was discovered they brought Molotov cocktails with them, but they found that not everyone in their group was simply an activist -- some were working with the FBI, and a case that was presented to the media as misplaced idealism turned into domestic terrorism on closer examination seemed more like entrapment. In the documentary Better This World, filmmakers Katie Galloway and Kelly Duane de la Vega explore the true story of Brad Crowder and David McKay, how they became involved in progressive politics, and the facts behind the activist leaders in which they placed their trust. Better This World received its world premiere at the 2011 South by Southwest Film Festival.