Little Chenier

Little Chenier is a 2006 film written by Jace Johnson and Bethany Ashton, and directed by Ashton. It is set in the bayous of Louisiana, and stars Johnathon Schaech, Frederick Koehler, Tamara Braun, Jeremy Davidson, Clifton Collins Jr., amp Chris Mulkey. The film completed production in 2006 but had difficulty finding a distributor despite glowing reviews from a number of film festivals.citation needed It premiered at the Austin Film Festival on October 20, 2006 and was released January 18, 2008. Radio London Films released it on DVD on July 8, 2008.

Three weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit Louisiana, Hurricane Rita hit the city of Lake Charles and the various parishes used for filming. Virtually all of the sets and locations used in the film were destroyed, leaving many locals homeless. The film is believed to be the only known footage of the area. Bethany Ashton and her family set up a nonprofit organization called Rita Remembered to rebuild the communities and help those in need, who were largely left out of the eventual help offered to victims of Katrina. The charity is unique in that Ashton and the fellow creators invite people to correspond directly with them to find out exactly how their contributions were used.

Source: Wikipedia