Rise Against to shoot video with Nico Sabenorio

Director NICO SABENORIO hit the road to profile the
life of the American farmer for the new music video, ‘Ballad of Hollis
Brown.’ The powerful song, performed by rock band RISE AGAINST is part
of the album, “Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan” saluting two
iconic cultural forces: Bob Dylan and Amnesty International.

Currently profiled on MTV, VH1 and Fuse, Sabenorio joined the band in
Chicago to create an authentic footage documentary/music video hybrid
that explores the struggles of modern day American farmers. The
original folk song, written and released by Bob Dylan back in 1964,
tells the tale of one farmer, Hollis Brown, who falls on hard times.
Sabenorio and Rise Against expand on that theme for the new video,
widening its scope to examine the challenges faced by the American
agricultural workers and drawing connections to poverty at large.

A seasoned documentary filmmaker, Sabenorio was excited to merge his
style of filmmaking with a socially conscious band like Rise Against,
commenting, “We made the video on the road from Chicago to California,
exploring 2000 miles of agricultural America and getting to know real
family farmers and ranchers on and off the beaten path. There were no
actors in this video. I rigged my laptop so I could edit on the road,
literally on the road – from the backseat of our 4WD while the
production manager drove. The trip was an eye opener for me – family
farmers are facing a great deal of challenges, from big agriculture to
drought to genetic engineering. Hopefully the video will be just as
eye opening for viewers.”

Sabenorio, an award winning documentary director, recently gained
attention for directing the inspiring “Life After Meth” campaign for
Partnership for at DrugFree.org (formerly Partnership for a Drug Free
America) and Office for National Drug Control Policy which chronicled
real meth addicts who recovered and turned their lives around. He also
earned high praise as director of the documentary film “The Slave Next
Door” for National Geographic which was featured on the Larry King
Live show.

Currently, Sabenorio is in production on a documentary for The
Partnership at DrugFree.org exploring one of the fastest growing
problems in the country, prescription drug abuse. In addition, he is
in development on a narrative feature about youth violence in
middle-America, based on his award winning 2010 documentary, “Bout
that Bout.”

With a passion for spreading awareness of social issues through
cinematic, emotional non-fiction films, Sabenorio has explored such
topics as human trafficking, youth violence, agricultural poverty,
crystal meth and prescription drug abuse. This former student of New
York University's famed Tisch School of the Arts has directed for such
organizations as National Geographic, Interscope Records, The
Partnership at DrugFree.org and Amnesty International.

For additional information about Nico Sabenorio or to watch the
‘Ballad of Hollis Brown’ music video visit:
www.NicoSabenorio.com

For more on Amnesty International visit: www.AmnestyUSA.org