Americans With No Address (Review & Giveaway!)

homelessness documentary
“We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty.” ~Mother Teresa

The Americans With No Address team is on a mission to raise awareness and offer solutions to homelessness in America. Through a comprehensive five-production approach, including the documentary Americans With No Address and the feature film NO ADDRESS, which will be coming to theaters nationwide on February 28th, they hope to break the cycle of homelessness in this country. In addition, there is a novelization of the award-winning screenplay, a soundtrack, and an interactive study guide for people who want to be part of the solution in their own community.

Watch Americans With No Address today – Now Streaming on Prime Video!

Synopsis

Americans With No Address is a documentary that investigates the growing homeless crisis in America. The production crew set out on a cross-country mission to understand both the human experience and governmental policies, while meeting the advocates who work to offer solutions, revealing some surprising truths. This film captures the untold stories of those experiencing homelessness, while serving as a wake-up call to overcome systemic failures and find real answers to the problem.

The documentary team spent three weeks interviewing a diverse group of over 175 people in 20 major cities across 18 states including politicians, policy makers, mission directors, clinical specialists, directors of local and regional nonprofits, current and past Executive Directors of the U.S Interagency Council on Homelessness in the Presidential Administration, Salvation Army Commanders, CEOs of large national organizations like Citygate Network and St. Vincent de Paul, and many other leaders and influencers. They also interviewed individuals who were formerly homeless as well as some who are currently homeless.

The interviews came about first to ensure the accuracy of the NO ADDRESS feature film. Those interviews then became the foundation of the complimentary 90-minute documentary Americans With No Address. Having this firsthand perspective of what is truly causing the homelessness problem helped the team greatly in producing NO ADDRESS. The documentary is narrated by William Baldwin, who stars in the feature film. A few clips from the movie are shown in the documentary, providing a narrative perspective of various issues being discussed.

In the making of this documentary, the team witnessed firsthand the unbreakable spirit that thrives in the face of adversity. Americans With No Address captures the essence of what is causing the homeless crisis, and portrays what solutions have been implemented and proven to show positive changes. It challenges preconceptions about homelessness, prompts viewers to confront their biases, and inspires broader conversations about policy reform and community engagement.

The goal of the documentary is to raise awareness, build empathy, and create a call to action for everyone in this country to work more closely with nonprofit organizations that already provide real solutions to the problem. The documentary envisions how those experiencing homelessness will become better equipped with the proper support to heal and begin a new journey with the comfort of a home, job stability, and a supportive community.

Review

There has been a drastic increase in the number of homeless in our country. Homelessness has now expanded not only in urban cities but also in rural and suburban areas. Homelessness does not discriminate; it can impact anyone, regardless of background, age, or socioeconomic status. As of 2023, in the United States alone, over 2.8 million people experienced homelessness, and more than half of them were children. Trauma, mental health issues, substance abuse, lack of affordable housing, and an often ineffective social safety net are all factors for the drastic increase in homelessness in our country.

Americans With No Address is an eye-opening documentary that looks beyond the stereotypes and behind the scenes of homelessness to uncover the shocking truth of the homeless crisis in America. From sprawling roadside homeless camps to crowded downtown soup kitchens, each stop on the filmmakers’ bus tour unveils unique stories of homeless individuals who have navigated life without a physical address. This film has deepened my understanding of homelessness and its complexities.

With so many people living paycheck to paycheck these days, it’s often just a series of unfortunate events that render them homeless. Or it could be one major event such as divorce, loss of a job, or a medical emergency. But once you find yourself in that position, you’re trapped in a vicious cycle. For instance, maybe your wallet was stolen and now you have no ID, which means you can’t do a lot of things, including get a job. But you can’t obtain a new driver’s license because you can’t put a P.O. box on the application, it has to be a street address, so what can you do? You’re stuck!

This documentary is the most unbiased reporting I’ve ever seen on this problem, without political agendas and rhetoric. They just tell it the way it is. Homelessness is a nationwide human rights issue, it’s growing every day, and needs to be addressed. We often think of homeless people as suffering from mental illness and substance abuse, but they’re not all like the stereotypical bums on Skid Row. I think the severe shortage of affordable housing is a major factor, especially for families with children.

Government is not the solution to homelessness; in fact, governmental policies often exacerbate the problem instead of providing practical solutions. For example, there are some charities that do offer mental health services for the homeless, and they aren’t very expensive, but the government won’t subsidize them. And yet the government will subsidize safe spaces where addicts can get drug paraphernalia and use drugs. This begs the question… WHY???

The production team noted the significant benefits of available housing and supportive services as an effective way to handle the crisis of homelessness. For example, Haven for Hope in San Antonio, Texas, has been praised nationally for its holistic approach to homelessness response and prevention. Likewise, I love what Mobile Loaves & Fishes is doing in Austin, Texas, with the Community First Village, a master-planned community of tiny homes for the chronically homeless, complete with a laundry, cinema, community center, park, organic farm, and market.

More specifically, they didn’t come right out and say it, but it became evident by the end of the documentary that the organizations with the most successful track record of positive outcomes helping the homeless are faith-based community nonprofits. Places like Union Rescue Mission in Los Angeles, Helping Up Mission in Baltimore, The Salvation Army Harbor Light Center in San Francisco, Nashville Rescue Mission in Tennessee, The Bowery Mission in New York, etc.

The Interviewees

Americans With No Address offers practical solutions based on all of the interviewees’ first-hand experiences and advice, which can be applied to address real needs. I appreciate all the homeless individuals who went on camera and told their stories. This documentary finally gives them a voice. Moreover, I was particularly impressed by the following interviewees…

Rev. Brandon Thomas, Director of Leadership, Citygate Network, Denver, Colorado is truly passionate about helping the homeless but is totally frustrated about bad policies that don’t help people and actually harm them, especially when it comes to the lack of mental health services.

Hon. Darrell Steinberg, former Mayor of Sacramento, California and a Democrat, likewise shared his own frustrations with policy struggles, local ordinances, and community-level challenges revolving around “the right to shelter.”

James Macklin, Outreach Director of The Bowery Mission in New York, NY was once homeless himself. That is, until a nice lady found him sleeping on the subway and said, “What in the world is a man like you doing sleeping on a train? You don’t look like that kind of man. I think you can do better than this.” She gave him a business card for the The Bowery Mission, which has been serving New Yorkers in need since 1879.

An important lesson in this documentary is that people will rise to meet your level of expectations for them! Moreover, the difference between life and death could be one person’s caring action. “You never look down on a human being … unless you’re trying to lift them up.”

Action Items

Americans With No Address, and its companion film NO ADDRESS, are part of a broader effort to build empathy and compassion for those experiencing homelessness. By focusing on the human experience, Americans With No Address is a compelling call to action, urging us all to engage with this issue on a deeper, more compassionate level.

If one story could change your perspective, would you listen? What can people do to help with this crisis?

  • First, watching the documentary provides solution-based suggestions, and we recommend that everyone watch Americans With No Address today – Now Streaming on Prime Video! Also visit: AmericansWithNoAddress.com
  • Second, as you will see in the documentary, the team visited hundreds of nonprofits and organizations on the frontlines, providing resources and services to those experiencing homelessness with proven successful outcomes. We encourage you connect with one of these organizations in your community to share your time as a volunteer or make a financial donation.
  • Most importantly, people experiencing homelessness often feel invisible—even just one interaction, like saying hello, can change someone’s trajectory of life; please begin to see the human side of homelessness.

About Robert Craig Films

Robert Craig, founder of Gutterglove, has a long history of taking start-ups and guiding their growth to become successful companies. In 2019, he founded Robert Craig Films, a platform for which he planned to produce movies of inspiration and hope. He believes God has a plan for him to make quality films with spiritually uplifting messages. He looks forward to applying his creativity, business acumen, and passion for making great movies that will ultimately inspire people to be more loving, kind, and forgiving towards each other. This will definitely make the world a better place to live in.

Trailer

Watch Americans With No Address today – Now Streaming on Prime Video!

Links

Giveaway

Is homelessness an issue in your community? Have you had any experiences interacting with people who are homeless? Leave a comment for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card! (Note: This is limited to US winners only. Contest ends 1/29/25 at 11:59pm PST. Winners must submit their full name and email address by 1/30/25. We will not be able to accept winners submitted after this date. Comments are moderated, so please be patient as it may take a while for yours to appear if you haven’t posted here before.)

Disclosure

Many thanks to Robert Craig Films for providing a sample of the product for this review. Opinions are 100% my own.

#AmericansWithNoAddressMIN #MomentumInfluencerNetwork

4 Comments

Add a Comment
  1. Homelessness doesn’t seem to be an issue in my town, but I lived for a year in South America where homelessness was a huge problem. It was very sad to see so many children living on the streets.

  2. My community sadly have many who are homeless, living in the woods. I never knew about this till my mom mentioned about them. They live in tents and have everything they own travel with them. Witnessed many by a local convenience store, where they would pick up used cigarettes or anything that they can use. It was sad to see, little scary and just terrible. I don’t know what happened to cause them to be without a home. I just know it’s so terrible. The food banks are helpful, I donate there as well as new food toys books etc to so many different reliable organizations to give those who have nothing, something. I even enter giveaways to not win for myself, but to give those who would or could use it. Even if I can’t afford to always support with money, I try to get all free rewards and items that are given to me to give to others.

  3. There are homeless people in my city. I have read stories about the people who are homeless in the newspaper but I have never seen anyone who is homeless. I donate food, blankets, clothes, shoes and personal products like bottles of shampoo, conditioner and body wash that I get when I stay in hotels.

    1. Congratulations Susan! You’ve won this giveaway! The gift card was emailed to you. Please check your inbox including junk/spam folders.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Time limit is exhausted. Please reload CAPTCHA.