Freestyle Digital Media Acquires Pandemic Drama We Are Gathered Here Today
Freestyle Digital Media, the digital film distribution division of Byron Allen’s Allen Media Group, has picked up North American VOD rights to We Are Gathered Here Today, a timely and emotionally raw drama set during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. The film will be available to rent and own on all major digital HD internet, cable, and satellite platforms — as well as on DVD — beginning May 20, 2025.
A Pandemic Story Told Through a Digital Lens
Written and directed by Paul Boyd, We Are Gathered Here Today follows the Stone family as they confront loss, conflict, and reconnection during a video conference call — their only means of communication with the family’s dying patriarch, hospitalized with Covid-19.
The plot centers on Henry Stone, the elder of a large interracial family, who is isolated in a hospital ward. As he approaches the end of his life, the family gathers on a Zoom-style call arranged by hospital staff using an iPad. In lieu of being bedside, they must say goodbye through screens — a devastating reminder of how many lived and died in isolation during the pandemic.
As relatives log in from around the country, frustrations flare, old wounds resurface, and deep-seated family secrets emerge. While disconnection and confusion initially dominate the conversation, the bonds of family love break through the noise, even as death arrives from a distance.
A Cast Spread Across Screens
Shot entirely via webcam with actors isolated in their own homes, We Are Gathered Here Today was filmed over the course of three days with an emphasis on authenticity and improvisation.
The cast includes:
- Danny Huston as Peter Stone
- Nicole Ari Parker as Nancy Stone
- Lin Shaye as Jean Cole
- Jenny O’Hara as Faye Stone
- Margaret Avery as Estelle Wyatt
- Phoebe Tonkin, Luna Blaise, Charlie Barnett, Clifton Davis, Bill Smitrovich, Peter Jason, Javicia Leslie, Rae Dawn Chong, Elizabeth Rodriguez, Parker McKenna Posey, DaJuan Johnson, Jermey Kent Jackson, Fatimah Taliah, Kai Wener, Navia Robinson, and Baker Powell.
Behind the Deal
- Produced by Eric Barrett and Danny Huston
- Distributed by Freestyle Digital Media
- Acquired via a deal negotiated with Jeffrey Cooper and Cut Entertainment Group
