Lyn Goldfarb Productions, Inc.

Thirty-five years before Barack Obama's election as President, the question of race and the possibility of crossing racial boundaries was put to the test in a remarkable, yet overlooked, story in American politics: Tom Bradley's historic election as Mayor of Los Angeles, the first African American mayor of a major city without a black majority. His unique coalition of African Americans and white liberals united a divided city, influenced two generations of policy makers and leaders, and laid the groundwork for inter-racial coalitions which later encouraged the elections of many minority candidates nationwide.

Mayor Bradley, the son of a sharecropper and grandson of slaves, held office for an unprecedented twenty years, and transformed Los Angeles into one of the most important cities on the Pacific Rim. He ran twice for Governor of California, losing by the smallest of margins. If elected, Tom Bradley would have been the first African-American governor in the nation.

TOM BRADLEY'S IMPOSSIBLE DREAM is being produced by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Lyn Goldfarb and Emmy Award-winner Alison Sotomayor.

TOM BRADLEY’S IMPOSSIBLE DREAM will be more than a biography of an incredible man; it is the story of the challenges which face our cities and nation, the paradox of race, and the complexities of coalitions. It is part of a unique and innovative multi-tiered media four-part project, which includes the following:

1. TOM BRADLEY’S IMPOSSIBLE DREAM: A 90-minute high definition feature documentary designed for television broadcast (PBS) and theatrical release.

2. EDUCATIONAL VIDEO: A 30-minute educational documentary and study guide for middle and high school classrooms..

3. INTERACTIVE WEBSITE: A multi-layered, interactive website which will engage people to share their stories about Tom Bradley.

4. TOM BRADLEY FILMED ORAL HISTORY PROJECT: A minimum of 100 hours of substantive and in-depth filmed interviews in high quality, high definition video which will reside both on our film’s interactive website and at the Tom Bradley archives.

LA STORIES: The Los Angeles Center for Visual History

Twenty years from now, what will the media and the historians say about the new Los Angeles? What will be are legacy? What visual materials will we have that capture and reflect the life of the city and its people?

As a city, Los Angeles is in the midst of transformative change, and yet, without a proactive and conscious civic program to document what is happening in Los Angeles today and in the future, our history will be lost for future generations.

LA STORIES is a proposal to establish a visual archive, which will exist in multiple platforms, including an online digital archive and a physical exhibition space. The Center will provide the catalyst, the means, and the venues for systematically collecting, videotaping, cataloging, preserving and exhibiting key aspects of the city's life. And the Center will be participatory, providing a forum for sharing and exchanging video reflecting and interpreting Los Angeles.