Former Providence Mayor Vincent "Buddy" Cianci has been in federal prison for about two years, but he has not been forgotten.
The colorful and much-loved official, who remained in office during his 2002 trial and conviction for racketeering conspiracy, will soon have his full story told through a documentary, "Buddy, an American Story," created by independent filmmaker Cherry Arnold with the help of Brown students, faculty and alums.
In 2002, intrigued by the mayor's story, Arnold began a two-month campaign of writing letters to Cianci, asking for permission to follow him around. Eventually the mayor ceded to her efforts and allowed her to shadow him for a year until two days before he went to prison.
According to Arnold, Cianci did not embrace her and her camera with open arms. "For the most part he would ignore me. In a few cases he was mean," Arnold said. "But I would say on the whole he was very generous, under the conditions that he was enduring."
Cianci, who served a total of 21 years in two separate stints as mayor, is credited with revitalizing a struggling Providence. But the mayor came under FBI investigation after he was suspected of taking bribes for favors such as tax breaks, jobs and special deals on city-owned land.
Cianci was indicted on 12 counts of racketeering, extortion, bribery and mail fraud conspiracy and was convicted on one count of racketeering conspiracy. He received a sentence of 64 months in federal prison.
Several Brown faculty members and students have been involved with Arnold's film. Jeff Zimbalist '02 is working as the film's editor, and other Brown students have worked as interns.
Chris Savage '05 has worked on post-production for the film since last summer. Currently the only intern, he spends 10-15 hours a week researching, transcribing and editing footage.
As an art-semiotics major, Savage is completing an independent study based on his editing internship, in which he says he's "trying to understand the editing process from an academic perspective."
His independent study has also allowed Savage to give Arnold his input. "She is open and cares about what I think," he said.
"There's been so many people that have worked on this project and made it possible, especially the Brown students," Arnold said. She said she has been so pleased with the help that Brown students have given her that she is currently thinking of bringing another intern onto the project.
The film is not an attempt to reveal scandals unknown to the public. Instead, Arnold looks into Cianci's mayorship from an anthropological angle, taking an in-depth look at Providence's and Rhode Island's history, citing Brown as a "fantastic resource for background information" on city politics, urban policy and history.
Darrell West, chairman of the Taubman Center for Public Policy and American Institutions and professor of political science, has served as one of the key advisors for Arnold's research on the political context surrounding Cianci's mayorship. West, who focuses on public opinion and has known Cianci for about two decades, provided Arnold with information on public opinion polls about Cianci.
West will review the rough cut of the film once it is completed, looking primarily at the piece's factual accuracy. However, he said his contribution to the film is "pretty informal."
"The documentary really is (Arnold's) vision," he said.
If Arnold can attain one more grant from the Rhode Island Council on Arts and Humanities, she will be able to release the film this spring; if the grant does not come through, she will not be able to complete post-production work. But Arnold said she is hopeful that "Buddy" will premiere at the Avon Theater on Thayer Street, and she is planning a free screening on the Brown campus with West's help.
Television networks such as HBO, PBS and the Discovery Channel have already shown an interest in broadcasting the film, Arnold said.
Savage said his work with the film has made Cianci "more of a human and less of a political figure. And I think that's something that happens to everyone when they see this, when they see the documentary. You get to see all the different sides of the guy."
