What began with 20 iPhones distributed to residents of Watts—a historically significant South Los Angeles neighborhood known for its complex challenges—became something unprecedented: a community-driven documentary that catalyzed real change. By placing cameras directly in the hands of students, former gang members, police officers, and activists, the project created authentic dialogue that turned longtime rivals into collaborators, contributing to a historic peace pledge and a 90% reduction in homicides.
That is the story of the powerful documentary, Nothing to See Here: Watts.
Following the film’s premiere at the 2025 Resnick Aspen Action Forum, where participants experienced this powerful story alongside the community filmmakers themselves, this panel brought together a group of the collaborators behind the project. Aspen Global Leadership Network Fellows working in deep partnership with community leaders shared insights into their process, emphasizing that their role wasn’t to tell the story, but to build the infrastructure for the community to tell it themselves. As Suzanne Malveaux noted, “it was their story to tell,” requiring the team to “stay out of the way and just listen.”
Speaker Details:
- Michael Soenen, CEO, Nothing to See Here Productions (Henry Crown Fellowship)
- Sherine Ebadi, Managing Director, Kroll (Finance Leaders Fellowship)
- Christopher Varelas, Aspen Institute Trustee, Co-founder of the Aspen Finance Leaders Fellowship
- Todd Lieberman, Oscar and Emmy winning producer and founder of Hidden Pictures
- Suzanne Malveaux, CEO, Malveaux Global Media, LLC, Former CNN Anchor & White House Correspondent (Henry Crown Fellowship)
- Stix, Founder + CEO, TWG / Thinkwatts Foundation
The creators shared how the project applied Aspen Institute seminar methodology in an unprecedented way. “Rather than read Plato, they read each other’s lives through film. Rather than do Antigone, they made a rough cut,” creator Michael Soenen explained, showing how classical dialogue principles can create space for authentic community transformation.Their experience illustrates a fundamental truth about lasting change: the most powerful stories, and solutions, emerge when communities have the tools, support, and trust to speak for themselves.