PASADENA, Calif., Nov. 9, 2009 ― “The Philosopher Kings,” takes us on a journey through the halls of the most prestigious universities and colleges in the United States to learn from the staff members who see it all and have been through it all: the janitors.
The 70-minute documentary weaves together thought-provoking stories of triumph and tragedy from the lives of eight university custodians who have lived life fully and deeply, yet who are amongst those millions of Americans who are often disrespected or invisible in our culture because of their job status. Director Patrick Shen explains, “This film shows us what wisdom can be found when people, who spend a good part of their lives listening and observing, get a chance to speak their minds.”
Luis Cardenas, a custodian at Caltech for 18 years, is one of the university janitors chosen to be in “The Philosopher Kings.” Originally from Zacatecas, Mexico, Cardenas, tells his story, in Spanish, of having to cope with the loss of his right arm, which was the unfortunate outcome of a drunk driver’s collision.
Shen, founder of the Pasadena-based independent film company Transcendental Media, got the idea for “The Philosopher Kings” when filming his first feature length documentary “Flight From Death.” “While interviewing psychology professor Sheldon Solomon, he told me that he was a haircut away from a job with Princeton University, but he was turned down because of his appearance,” Shen explains. “He doesn’t look like your typical professor. He has long hair and wears tie-dye shirts.” Solomon, of Skidmore College (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), said in an on-camera interview, “I think there’s a lot of people with suits and ties and empty heads and that there’s a lot of janitors that if we bothered to listen to them we would find a keen understanding of the human condition way beyond what their station in life or their physical appearance suggests to us.”
“This made me think,” recalls Shen, “that perhaps we should be interviewing janitors instead of professors and quote-unquote philosophers.” So Shen and his co-producer, Greg Bennick, started phone-interviewing janitors around the country and eventually narrowed the selection down for what has culminated into the feature length documentary.
“The Philosopher Kings” had its world premiere at the 2009 AFI-Discovery Channel Silverdocs Documentary Festival. In addition to Silverdocs, the film has screened at the San Francisco International Documentary Film Festival, the Calgary International Film Festival, the Orlando Film Festival, and London’s Raindance Film Festival, to name a few. The film is poised to play New York City’s Margaret Mead Film and Video Festival and the Virginia Film Festival, among others. “The Philosopher Kings” is also currently screening at various universities and for labor groups across the United States. To view the full screening schedule, or to request a screening at your organization, visit www.philosopherkingsmovie.com.
“The Philosopher Kings” DVD was made available on Oct. 2, 2009 in recognition of National Custodial Worker’s Day. The film can be purchased online at www.philosopherkingsmovie.com.
About Transcendental Media
Transcendental Media (TM) is a Pasadena, Calif.-based independent motion picture company. With a vision “to agitate the sleep of mankind,” TM produces socially conscious feature-length films. TM became nationally recognized in 2005 with its critically acclaimed 7-time best documentary winner “Flight From Death: The Quest For Immortality” directed by Patrick Shen. TM was founded in 1999 by award-winning Director Patrick Shen. For more information, visit www.transcendfilms.com.
About Patrick Shen
Patrick Shen directs, co-produces, and co-writes documentary films with his team at Transcendental Media (TM). Prior to starting the independent motion picture company in 1999, Shen was second unit director of the Emmy-nominated documentary We Served With Pride. Previous to working on documentary films, Shen worked full-time on Emmy Award winning shows like Talk Soup and E! News at E! Entertainment Television. Shen resides in Pasadena, Calif. with his wife Karen and their one-year old son Lukas. For more information, visit www.patrickshen.com.
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