The Plain Dealer | Steven Litt  |  May 20, 2016

Spaces gallery releases the first of its "Fixer" film series aimed at RNC delegates (video)

CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland artist Kate Sopko and a team of collaborators today released the first of seven short films aimed at answering the hypothetical question of what residents involved in remaking the city would show delegates to the upcoming Republican National Convention, if they had the chance.

The online project, organized by the nonprofit gallery Spaces, is entitled "The Fixers," a reference to journalistic practice in which a foreign correspondent hires a local reporter to arrange tours, introductions and stories.

The first film in the series focuses on Tanese Horton, a Site Coordinator at Harvey Rice Wraparound School, who is shown during a day's work at the K-8 school located in Cleveland's Buckeye neighborhood.

The school, according to Spaces, is one of 25 in the Cleveland Municipal School District using a comprehensive strategy to play an expanded role in the lives of children and their community.

The effort is part of a pilot program launched by United Way of Greater Cleveland.

Other films in the "Fixer" series will be released between now and the Republican convention, accompanied by screenings and public dialogues around Cleveland, according to a Spaces news release.

A free public opening is scheduled at Spaces from 6 to 9 p.m. tonight, launching three galleries of works by artists who question the political process.

Debuts include a project by resident artist Roopa Vasudevan of Shanghai, China and Brooklyn, N.Y.; the Fixer film by Sopko; the Start Here. Finish Here selection of videos and films that focus on the election cycle; and a mini-retrospective of political cartoons by Edward Freska.

Original Article