National Civil Rights Museum

The National Civil Rights Museum, established on the site where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was slain in 1968, has long been a regional attraction in Memphis, TN. In 2008, the NCRM had a prominent role in “The Witness,” a short documentary about the civil rights era. BIG saw the film’s launch as opportunity to bring the Museum national attention. Having designed Web sites for both the NCRM and “The Witness,” BIG staged a VIP screening of the film in Los Angeles, featuring a guest list of civil rights icons, social justice activists and Hollywood influencers. With respected artists including Tim Robbins, Ben Harper, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Janeane Garafolo and Henry Rollins attending and participating in a substantive Q&A session, the event won significant press coverage and put the NCRM on the cultural map. Supported by the event and BIG’s ongoing PR campaigns for the NCRM, the film also got a significant boost: garnering a multi-platform broadcast deal with HBO and educational distributor Films for Humanity, and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject).