Experiencing Interruptions?

One Person, One Vote?

Programmers Award for BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE, Grand Jury Nomination for BEST FIRST FEATURE DOCUMENTARY (2024 Pan African Film Festival)

One Person, One Vote? is an award-winning documentary that takes an in-depth look at the US Electoral College, its slavery origins, and impact on American politics today.

The film features four dynamic electors - a Republican, a Democrat, a Green Party and Kanye West elector, who offer insight into the inner workings of this often-misunderstood institution.

At a time when the Electoral College is making headlines in America’s political discourse, One Person, One Vote? is a nonpartisan and timely film that will inform the raging debate.

"Our team very much appreciated the opportunity to consider your documentary. We applaud you for taking what some might consider a challenging topic and make it entertaining and thought-provoking, making us consider the Electoral College in new ways. We particularly see the potential for your film to engage and inform younger audiences.” Basil Tsiokos, Senior Programmer, Non-Fiction, Sundance Film Festival

“Maximina Juson, a Filipina-American, boldly exposes the roots of our political system. Her film is a valuable contribution to the ongoing debate over America’s anti-democratic electoral system." - Hollywood Progressive Film Review

  • Maximina Juson
    Director
  • Maximina Juson
    Writer
  • Maximina Juson
    Producer
    Mama Bears
  • Polly Baca
    Key Cast
  • Derrick Wilburn
    Key Cast
  • Patricia McCracken
    Key Cast
  • Kit Maclean
    Key Cast
  • Jelani Cobb
    Key Cast
  • Paul Finkelman
    Key Cast
  • Akhil Reed Amar
    Key Cast
  • Daresha Kyi
    Producer
    Chavela, Mama Bears
  • Christie Herring
    Consulting Producer
    The Campaign
  • Michael Vargas
    Director of Photography
    Con Safos
  • Martina Radwan
    Director of Photography
    Boys State
  • Maximina Juson
    Cinematographer
    Mama Bears (Add'l Camera)
  • Sari Gilman
    Editor
  • Maximina Juson
    Editor
  • Michael Vargas
    Editor
  • Pierre Bennu
    Animation & Illustration
  • Mark Batson
    Composer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 18 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    November 3, 2023
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Shooting Format:
    4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • The Pan African Film & Arts Festival
    Los Angeles
    United States
    February 19, 2024
    World Premiere
    WINNER: Best Documentary (Programmers Award)
  • 2021 National Endowment for the Humanities

    Grantee
  • WIF and Sundance Institute Finance Intensive

    2020 Fellow
Director Biography - Maximina Juson

Maximina Juson is an award-winning filmmaker and founder of HUMovies, a film and video production company based in Los Angeles. Her debut feature film, "One Person, One Vote?" is a National Endowment for the Humanities grant recipient that world premiered at The 2024 Pan African Film Festival, taking home the Programmer's Award for Best Documentary Feature. Maximina Juson was Consulting Producer (and Additional Camera) for Mama Bears, a documentary exploring the transformative experience of conservative, Christian mothers who decide to accept their LGBTQ children, which premiered at SXSW in 2022 —a short version of the film was commissioned by the ACLU and won an Emmy for 2019 Outstanding Documentary Short and two Webby Awards. In 2018, she produced Harlem Rising for The Harlem Children’s Zone. The documentary, drawing upon 30 years of archival footage, is a history of the organization’s efforts to “break the cycle of generational poverty” for Harlem families. Juson also shot, produced and directed a video web series for The Washtenaw ID Project, an organization that helps disenfranchised communities and individuals obtain a valid government-issued ID in Washtenaw County, Michigan.

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Director Statement

The Electoral College is how we elect the highest official in our land, yet the vast majority of Americans don't understand how it works or why we have it in the first place. "One Person, One Vote?" is a timely, nonpartisan film that fills this stark information gap at a time when the Electoral College makes headlines in our political discourse, and as we enter a highly consequential presidential election in 2024.

I am the founder of HUMovies, a film and video production company with a mission to develop and produce content that shines a light on areas of culture, politics, and society that have been overlooked, misunderstood, or forgotten. HUM is an acronym for “humans understanding machinery,” by which I mean the metaphorical machinery of our times. HUMovies seek to educate and spark dialogue around timely issues and themes, with the goal of nurturing a deeper understanding between cultures and communities.

As a poet, musician, and multi-media content creator, this project is a reflection of my multidisciplinary artist background fueled and motivated by a topic that has kept me passionately engaged for years.

It is my sincere goal to serve the many communities that form the fabric of the United States through the making of "One Person, One Vote?" by enlightening on a confusing topic and forgotten history that belongs to us all, no matter which side of the aisle one happens to sit.

With gratitude,
Maximina Juson