Rat Film

The History of Baltimore Told Through a Unique Lens

A documentary that uses the rat as a passageway into the dark, complicated history of Baltimore. A unique blend of history, sci-fi, poetry and portraiture, RAT FILM brilliantly breaks documentary norms and dissects how racial segregation, redlining, and environmental racism built the Baltimore we see today.

What begins as an examination of our interactions with rats - portraits of rat afflicted citizens, use of rats in labs, development of rat poison - becomes a deeper exploration of Baltimore. Director Theo Anthony investigates the history of the city, and the systemic racism that established the low-income and predominantly black neighborhoods that are still plagued by rats today.

Official Selection at the SXSW Film Festival and Hot Docs Film Festival.

"[An] electrifying cinematic essay that asks us to reconsider a lot more than a maligned species." -Sheri Linden, The Los Angeles Times