Sunday, September 13, 2015

Innocent NYPD Detectives Doc Wins Another Prize

At the close of this year's DOCUTAH International Documentary Film Festival in St. George, Utah, a big winner at the Saturday Raven Awards ceremony was Once Upon a Crime: The Borrelli-Davis Conspiracy, collecting awards for Best Feature Film and Best Editing. The movie tell the story of two retired NYPD detectives falsely convicted and imprisoned for a Colorado murder.

Director Sheldon Wilson has a long history on the TV commercials and TV movies side. He has also taught at USC's School of Cinema. Helping him shepherd along this debut documentary is longtime William Morris agent Cassian Elwes, an executive producer on the project.



From Wilson's Director's Statement:

Little did I know that I would spend five years traveling across the United States in search of a murder suspect who had been placed into witness protection. Terry Lee D’Prero admitted to being one of the two gunmen who had killed Hal Levine, but instead of going to prison, Colorado law enforcement gave him immunity and a new life in witness protection in exchange for his self-serving testimony against Mike Borrelli and Bob Davis...
It would be an understatement to say that making this documentary has been a life-changing experience, one that was often infuriating, fascinating, shocking and sometimes absurdly funny. However, through it all the two men at the center of this story, Mike Borrelli and Bob Davis, have shown me the true meaning of friendship and through their actions, they have demonstrated the strong moral compass necessary to fight for justice through the worst of adversities.
I can only hope this film will help to reverse the wrongs done to these men; two men who so rightly deserve to have their names cleared.

Wilson's film debuted at last fall's Austin Film Festival, where it won a Best Documentary prize as well. There have been subsequent showings at festivals in Salem, Massachusetts, San Diego and Orlando, with another award bestowed along the way by the San Diego Cinema Society. The profiled case dates back to 1975-76.

[Once Upon a Crime: The Borrelli-Davis Conspiracy]

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