Stephen Lighthill Film Collection

Accession Number: 
UAV001622
Extent: 
24 linear feet (21 SB, 3 OS)

Stephen Lighthill has been involved in a large number of film productions, including social documentaries, feature films, and television. He has worked as a camera operator, cinematographer, and director. In 1979, he produced and directed a documentary film in Detroit called "Taking Back Detroit." The film features a movement that took an alternative approach to addressing Detroit’s long-term economic difficulties. The primary subjects are Kenneth V. Cockrel, Justin C. “Chuck” Ravitz, Sheila Murphy (Cockrel), and the Detroit Alliance for a Rational Economy (D.A.R.E.).

Lighthill's collection includes raw sound and film footage for "Taking Back Detroit," as well as intermediate materials from the film making process. Box 24 contains three final prints of the complete film. The film highlights the problems facing Detroit in 1979 and gives a short overview of some of the events that created those problems. It details the crumbling industrial, business, and residential infrastructure as well as documents Detroit city council meetings, community meetings, D.A.R.E. meetings, petition drives, and D.A.R.E.’s “City Life in the ‘80s” conference.

Date: 
1979-1980
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UAV001622.pdfUAV001622_guide.pdf155.94 KB