Synopsis
One Driver, One Mic is a documentary feature that chronicles how a group of immigrant cab drivers in Austin, Texas created a taxi cooperative to protect their livelihoods after Uber and Lyft rolled into town. As we follow the drivers' journey, we see how democracy is not easy, especially for a group of independent contractor drivers who must learn to trust each other and work as a team. After Uber and Lyft force a citywide referendum vote in protest of regulations, we see the drivers join a shoestring campaign to fight the technology giants. We witness how workers must constantly advocate for themselves through political organizing. Ultimately, this film serves as a cautionary tale for workers and labor organizers about the tenuous nature of democracy.
Official Selection at
2023 Doc.London Documentary Film Festival
2023 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival
2022 Chagrin Documentary Film Festival
2022 Workers Unite Film Festival
Immigration Film Festival
Credits
Directed/Filmed/Edited by Krishnan Vasudevan
Executive Producer Mairead Burke
Original score and sound mix by Timmy Sean Mahoney at Noisewater Studios
Funding and Support
Docs in Progress (editorial support through 2021 fellowship)
University of Maryland Provost and Office of Vice President for Research
Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland
Private fundraising by Executive Producer Mairead Burke
Team
Krishnan Vasudevan is a filmmaker and an assistant professor at the University of Maryland. His research and films critically examine capitalism through the study of product design, labor movements and journalism. His video journalism and motion graphics have been published in the New York Times, Slate, ProPublica and several other publications. He is a 2021 Docs in Progress Fellow, the recipient of a 2015 Austin Film Society Award and an editor on the award-winning investigative journalism project, Code Red. Krishnan received his MA from NYU and his doctorate from the University of Texas at Austin.
Mairead Burke is a clinical social worker and mitigation specialist based in the Washington, DC metro area.
Timmy Sean Mahoney is a musician and producer based in Los Angeles, California. He is the founder of Noisewater Records.
Request a Screening and License the Film
One Driver, One Mic is distributed through Collective Eye Films. Here’s a link to the film’s page on their website, where you can request a screening and license the film.