This award-winning film notes that craft beer generates tens of billions of dollars annually for the US economy. Despite beer’s Egyptian and African heritage, these traditions have been mostly forgotten and are rarely found in American brewing culture. Today, Black-owned breweries make up less than 1% of the nearly 9,000 breweries in operation. Eager to shift the historical perception of who makes and drinks beer, Black brewers, brand owners and influencers across the country are reshaping the craft beer industry and the future of America’s favorite adult beverage.
Director's Statement:
Craft beer has changed my life. Ever since I fell in love with it in 2014 in Asheville, North Carolina, it became a personal quest to discover as many breweries as possible. The more breweries I visited, however, the more I noticed that my wife and I were the only—or among the very few—people of color inside taprooms. After conducting some preliminary research into the craft beer industry, I realized it was heavily white male dominated, from brewery owners, to management, down to the brewing and bar staff.
My desire to better understand the lack of diversity in the craft beer industry is the catalyst for One Pint at Time. I wanted to shine the spotlight exclusively on stories of people working in craft beer that look like me. Over the course of four years, my team and I observed how many of these brewers fought—and struggled—to create a new narrative for Blacks within the industry. This is a multi- billion-dollar American business. Yet, Black-owned breweries are earning less than 1% of the money and continue to face hurdles rooted in discriminatory traditions. These are alarming facts. Ultimately, I hope ‘One Pint’ will contribute to the ongoing conversations about the need to diversify craft beer. May this film act as a mirror and inspire breweries to take those actions necessary to make this industry one that is more diverse, inclusive, equitable and just.