WASHINGTON D.C.– Steve Kerr wants to make it clear that while he's listed as an executive producer for Oscar-winning short-documentary All the Empty Rooms, he had very little to do with the actual making of the film.
“I want to make very clear that executive producer is a fancy way of saying I had nothing to do with it at all. Just to be very, very clear,” Kerr joked pregame before the Golden State Warriors' Monday matchup with the Washington Wizards. “But I'm incredibly honored to be associated with it.”
All the Empty Rooms, the winner of the Oscars' Best Documentary Short, is a film that covers issues close to Kerr's heart. The 35-minute short-doc follows broadcast journalist Steve Hartman and photographer Lou Bopp as they travel across the United States, capturing the untouched, empty bedrooms of children killed in school shootings.
As a vocal advocate against gun violence and a proponent of gun safety laws, Kerr was more than happy to attach his name to the film.
“They asked me about a year ago if I wanted to be an executive producer, and I jumped at it when I read about the project, because it's such an important film. Once I saw it, I was just blown away by the beauty, the sadness, the humanity so poignantly done.”
Steve Kerr's role with the film
For Kerr, the film's artistry is an important catalyst in tackling the issue.
“I think that it's important, especially, you know, given my advocacy for gun violence prevention. It's– you look for ways to touch everybody and avoid the political discourse that brings the issue down. And I just thought the film perfectly threaded that needle.”
While Kerr wasn't involved in the film's production, he played a major role in its public relations campaign in the lead-up to the Oscars.
This included penning an opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times in which he dove into the gun-violence epidemic in America and how the issue has had a personal effect on his own life. Kerr's father, Malcolm, was shot and killed in 1984 in Lebanon. Kerr also hosted a pair of screenings in San Francisco and Los Angeles, conducting a Q&A with director Joshua Seftel.
“My involvement was really putting my name on it and trying to help promote it,” Kerr explained. “But it was just beautifully done. “Just how poignant it was. And how empathetic and compassionate Steve and Lou were in the film when they were going into the homes. It was so powerful.”
The takeaway Steve Kerr wants people to leave the film with
Kerr noted that he doesn't get to add an Oscar trophy to his cabinet of NBA championships. But in Kerr's eyes, the accomplishment is the least important part of the film. Kerr feels like this film can help start a shift in the movement. Not just on a political, legislative level, but on a grassroots, power-to-the-people level.
“I'm trying to recommend to everybody I run into to watch it,” Kerr said. “It's 35 minutes, but you should watch it. It's hard to watch, but it's also unforgettable. And I do think that this issue… It's kind of a movement that we need to shift. Our country, our citizenry, we need to move the issue, because it's obviously not happening at the political level. But we know the power of protest and movements, and I hope sincerely that this film will help in that cause.”
Kerr added, “This is not a political issue. It's a public health crisis. When you watch the film, and you see the loss, and you see these innocent lives being taken. And then [when] you start to pay attention to the issue, you realize that there are plenty of things we can do to save lives.”
“And it can be daunting. I have a lot of people say to me, this is hopeless. It's not hopeless. We have legislation that's been passed frequently that is already saving lives. We know that statistically, but it's really the movement that is most important to me. The consensus of: we have to get something done.”
All the Empty Rooms is currently available to stream on Netflix.
