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netflix and thrill

Texas native unleashes thrilling Netflix true crime whodunit series

Steven Devadanam
Jan 4, 2019 | 10:17 am

Gripping, ominous, and chilling, The Innocent Man is the latest tale that has audiences buzzing on streaming juggernaut Netflix. The brooding series is based on the true crime novel of the same name by author John Grisham.

Much like the wildly popular streaming series Making a Murderer, The Innocent Man is an eerie whodunit, but at its heart, it’s a story that brutally illustrates that the challenges and corruption that plagues the U.S. criminal justice system.

Encompassing a winding six-episodes, The Innocent Man centers on the quiet town Ada, Oklahoma, and the brutal murders of waitress Debbie Carter in 1982 and store clerk Denice Hathaway in 1984. The investigations and trials rocked the city and ended with the conviction of four men. But as the series deftly illustrates, the entire process was flawed and confessions were coerced. The families of the murdered victims now live tortured lives, as do the wrongfully convicted men. (The tale of Ronald Williamson is especially disturbing.) The series mixes archival footage with riveting dramatizations that reflect the stark desolation of the story.

The Innocent Man is the brainchild of executive producer Ross Dinerstein, a Houston native and 15-year veteran of Hollywood who has dozens of titles successfully released — including one with Stephen King. After Dinerstein approached Grisham about a series, the celebrated author later handpicked Dinerstein to produce the project.

CultureMap caught up with Dinerstein, who shared the frightening story behind his riveting mini saga, which is now available to 137 million viewers worldwide.

CultureMap: Congratulations on the success of the series. Is this story so scary because it hits home?

Ross Dinerstein: Oh yeah. True crime is terrifying and I think audiences love to be scared. And true crime — it’s real, and it can happen to you. And even John Grisham says, you know, when he wrote the book, he was reading the obituary for Ronald Williamson and saw that they were both from small towns in the South and they’re both star baseball players. And John even looked at it and was like, “That could’ve been me.”

And I think people are fascinated by these stories because it could very well be them or their neighbor or a family friend that is, you know, wrongfully accused.

CM: Truly, in the right circumstances, this could happen to almost anybody.

RD:
It’s my worst nightmare personally to be imprisoned for a crime I didn’t commit, let alone sentenced to death for a crime I didn’t commit. And that, I think, is just terrifying.

This is important because it puts a magnifying glass on a very big flaw in the criminal justice system. Innocent people are being arrested and incarcerated and sentenced to death with little to no evidence, with either corrupt or mishandled evidence and they really don’t have a day in court. They have their day in court but, once they’re convicted, it’s next to impossible to get out, to get that overturned.

And, if you’re innocent and you’re in prison, you’re most likely gonna stay in prison.

We forged relationships with a lot of the people in this, from the family members of the victims, and we just owe it to them to tell the story. Because, honestly, once you’re locked away, people don’t really care.

CM: Did you create this series especially for binging?

RD: I’ll be very surprised that if anyone doesn’t watch, you know, all six episodes in over a day. We’ve created it to be binge-worthy. We’ve edited it that way. We feel like it’s an important part of the experience of watching it, because there are some ebbs and flows and the momentum builds and, then, the ending does leave you with a taste in your mouth. And I think most people will want to watch it all, if not in one sitting.

CM: Viewers are drawing a lot of comparisons to Making a Murderer.

RD:
With Making a Murderer, there are obviously some parallels because of Netflix. But our access was very different than theirs, and there wasn’t a lot of archival and there weren’t a lot of people that were still alive involved in ours. So, we really did kind of come up with our own language and our own game plan.

Our show relies heavily on recreations and they’re very cinematic and they’re very beautiful. And it comes from my narrative background, where we really focused on that. So, I think people will be surprised at sort of how cinematic and visual our show is.

CM: This series is especially haunting. Was it as hard to make as it was, at times, to watch?

RD:
Look, it’s a really hard show to make as a filmmaker, because it’s really depressing.Yeah, I really struggled with it. I spent a lot of time in Oklahoma and ended up making a very silly, R-rated comedy right after we finished shooting it to sort of balance my soul.

CM: The response on social media is tremendous — people are calling for new investigations — and it’s gone global to 133 countries.

RD:
True crime is really big in the U.K., and there’s already been a lot of press in [Britain] for this show, including a newspaper in the U.K. actually showing up at one of the subject matter’s houses, essentially stalking her and just demanding an interview. And it was a really minor character too. So, I think this is gonna be big in the U.K. I think it will be big in the U.S. But Netflix’s reach is global, and they’re known for these true-crime docs. So, I feel like it’s really gonna catch on.

CM: How does it feel to have a title available on Netflix’s welcome screen and available to more than 100 million viewers?

RD:
I’ve been making indie films for 15 years and to get 25,000 people to see your film was a home run. It’s a really big moment. But at the end of the day, this is just something that I’m just so excited about.

I’ve been a part of about 40 different projects, and this is about the most important thing I’ve ever done and this is the project that I’m the most proud of.

Houston native Ross Dinerstein is the series executive producer.

Netflix An Innocent Man Ross Dinerstein
Photo courtesy of Netlix
Houston native Ross Dinerstein is the series executive producer.
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Education upgrade

San Antonio nonprofit boosts STEAM education with $100,000 in grants to local schools

Francisco Ortiz
Nov 3, 2022 | 1:03 pm
Texas Yes San Antonio
Courtesy of TEXAS YES
18 Texas schools will receive various upgrades to help further their students’ academic pursuits.

Thanks to $167,000 in new grants from a San Antonio-based educational nonprofit, classrooms in 18 Texas schools will receive various upgrades to help further their students’ academic pursuits.

An October 27 news release announced the grants from TEXAS YES (Texas Youth Education Support project) will go towards upgrading classroom equipment including a new computer lab, robotics program elements, chicken coops, a 3D printer, iPads and smart boards, and the purchase of new library books.

For the first-time since its inception, the YES Grant shifted focus to include classroom improvements, which is a crucial need to a child’s education, TEXAS YES officials said.

“It’s incredible to help schools not only update library books, which has seen a huge lack of funding, but also help provide classroom equipment such as computers and even P.E. equipment,” TEXAS YES executive director Danielle Gunter stated in the release.

According to TEXAS YES, the following San Antonio-area schools and organizations are receiving grants: Koennecke Elementary School, CAST Med High School, Palo Alto Elementary School, Harmony School of Excellence, Burleson School of Innovation, Miguel Carrillo Jr. Elementary School, Boys & Girls Club of San Antonio, Patlan Elementary School, Spring Branch Middle School, West Campus High School, and Harlandale Independent School District.

The local grants total more than $100,000 in educational grants. The remaining funds have been distributed to schools in the Dallas and Austin areas.

Organization officials said TEXAS YES understands a high-quality STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, and math) education is critical to a student's efforts at forming a successful future.

TEXAS YES partnered up with local injury attorney and philanthropist Thomas J. Henry to create the TEXAS STEAM Grant, which provides students and teachers with funds to provide an effective STEAM education.

“Now more than ever it’s important to bridge the gap of educational inequality and give students the tools and resources they need to thrive in their academics,” said Henry in the release.

Grants are open to public, private, and charter elementary, middle, and high schools, as well as 501(c)3 nonprofits with a youth focus.

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A Night in Argentina

River Walk hotel swoons with romantic tango series this November

Brianna Caleri
Nov 3, 2022 | 10:58 am
Tango dancers at Hotel Valencia Riverwalk in San Antonio
Photo courtesy of Hotel Valencia Riverwalk

The dance series includes a two-hour dance performance, food, wine, and an elegant souvenier.

The last tango in San Antonio has not yet been danced, as the ballroom series returns to Hotel Valencia Riverwalk. The ornate riverside hotel offers an annual “Tango in the Courtyard” series, now in its third year, aiming for romance above all.

Weekends in November bring professional tango dancers to the courtyard, an intimate, old world space surrounded by arches, plants, and a decorative waterfall. This ticketed event offers an excuse to visit the hotel as a non-guest, enjoying the atmosphere even without an overnight stay. (Those who do decide to stay overnight may watch from their courtyard balcony if they book the special package.)

Atmosphere is everything for this series, which comes with a bottle of Malbec (a varietal tightly associated with Argentina), an unnamed “traditional Argentinian cheese dessert,” and a red rose. (No one seems to know, definitively, how the red rose between a dancer’s teeth became a tango cliché, but handing it off to your date to remember the night is a classy flourish nonetheless. Perhaps the series, which offers some history with the dancing, has a theory.)

Tango hasn’t always been such a posh pastime. Almost everyone, regardless of dance history knowledge, can recognize the dance that became a sensation thanks to immigrants and lower classes in Argentina during the mid-to-late 19th century. The modified salon dance, European in origin and African and Cuban in alteration, gained a florid reputation as most lower class movements do, as art forms practiced for passion rather than for the eye of high society.

The tango in particular emphasizes close bodies and stiff elegance juxtaposed with moments of high drama. In one of dance history’s most overt gentrifications, the tango made it back to Europe, was reportedly banned by several notable members of 20th century European high society (which always seems to add fuel to the fire of public interest), and a century later, is the height of poise and romance.

The “Tango in the Courtyard” series runs from 7:30-9:30 pm on November 4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, and 26. Tickets ($129 for two) are available at hotelvalencia-riverwalk.com. Valet parking is included.

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Planting new roots

San Antonio community garden grows with new farmers market and tree giveaway

Francisco Ortiz
Nov 2, 2022 | 10:59 am
Gardopia Gardens
Courtesy Gardopia Gardens

Gardopia Gardens will celebrate Texas Arbor Day on November 4 with a mass tree planting and more.

A community garden organization in San Antonio’s East Side will celebrate Texas Arbor Day the first weekend of November with a mass tree planting and giveaway and by launching a new farmers market.

While many communities nationwide observe Arbor Day in the spring, Texas offers its version of Arbor Day on November 4, when the weather is more optimal for planting and sustaining, organizers say.

In honor of Texas Arbor Day, San Antonio nonprofit Gardopia Gardens will expand its tree planting initiative this year with a goal of planting 1,000 fruit and other trees on 100 sites citywide. Planting will officially begin on November 4 and continue over a four-month period.

According to a news release, the initiative involves Gardopia Gardens partnering with various educational and community organizations as well as sustainably-minded businesses, such as The CO-OP SA, which will be planting 10 trees along Wurzbach Parkway and O'Connor Road.

From 4 to 7 pm on November 5, Gardopia Gardens will also host a community tree giveaway for the public. The news release said the trees — a mix of pomegranate, pear, fig, peach, plum, orange, lemon, lime, olive, live oak, Mexican sycamore and more — will be provided by San Antonio's Parks and Recreation Department, along with other partners, as needed.

Gardopia Gardens representatives said the tree giveaway and its resulting influx of newly planted fruit trees will positively benefit neighborhoods, especially those experiencing food scarcity.

Community garden representatives also said, one day, the newly planted trees will provide a much needed canopy to help counteract the heat island effect that growing population endures each spring and summer.

"The trees will help sequester carbon to address climate change. This is important because a lot of areas in San Antonio have a low tree canopy and so they have higher electric bills and a lot of these same areas are also food insecure. We may not see the shade, but we know the future generations will,” Gardopia Gardens founder Stephen Lucke said in a statement.

According to the release, when Gardopia Gardens first began its tree planting initiative in 2020, they planted 500 trees and the same again in 2021. This year, they intend to double that number.

At the same time as the November 5 onsite tree giveaway, Gardopia Gardens will host a new farmers market, which will offer fresh vegetables grown in the garden. The market will be open 9 am to 4 pm every Saturday, with plans to expand days and hours of operation, the release said.

Lucke stated the new store will help his group’s micro farm become sustainable and create a few jobs for the community.

Over the last few years, Gardopia Gardens has made a name for itself by offering programs and services to educational, commercial, and residential communities, providing tools, materials and best practices to ensure their sustainability and to help fight the local epidemic of obesity-related diseases and environmental issues.

“Gardopia Gardens is in a good place and continues to grow. At some point, we have aspirations beyond the garden to make sure the work we're doing is truly going to last for the long termm” Lucke said.

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