Documentary Tracks Rohnert Park Casino Debate

As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle: "When Rohnert Park citizens came out to speak up about a possible casino being planned in their backyard, it's unlikely that anyone considered their appearance might one day be shown at a local film festival. But that's exactly what happened with the production of 'The Rules of the Game,' a documentary by San Francisco journalists Garance Burke and Monica Lam, who covered the issue as part of their course work while graduate students at UC Berkeley.

"The 26-minute film, which follows the controversy that erupts when the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria clashes with a California town over plans to build a casino, will be screened as part of the 19th annual Wine Country Film Festival, which opens Thursday in Sonoma County.

"Burke and Lam were on the documentary track at UC Berkeley's graduate school of journalism and had been looking for an idea that would involve an issue featuring California demographics.

"…Central to the issue, Burke said, was a memorandum of understanding between the city council and the tribal council that left some residents feeling left out of the loop and horrified at the prospect of a 2,000-slot- machine casino, hotel complex and super-sized parking lot. Others in the community looked at the proposed casino as an opportunity to put revenue in the city's coffers and bring jobs to Rohnert Park.

"The film poses the questions: Will casinos pave the way to a better future for American Indians? And can communities make room for neighbors they once pushed out?..."