Alfred Spellman: Cocaine Cowboys

 Growing up in what appeared to be a retirement community in North Miami Beach, Alfred Spellman quickly realized Miami was more than meets the eye. After meeting Billy Corben in his 9th grade production class, the duo went on to be the youngest filmmakers ever to reach Sundance and then went on to start rakontur, a Miami-based documentary studio. Perfecting their craft of what they call ‘synthesis journalism’, Rakontur has created a legacy of exploring the corruption and drug trade in the Magic City with their epic trilogy, Cocaine Cowboys. 

Alfred’s anecdotes held us captivated as he detailed the decision to turn down a request from ESPN and how that turned into a Primetime slot for, The U. He told us about the film Broke and shared how that story might have been told differently had some reluctant athletes participated, but what really had us floored was the story about being an 8th grader in the back seat of a car and how that experience led to the idea for the Cocaine Cowboys Kings of Miami documentary. Yeah, Rakontur is the perfect name for the company because they are skilled storytellers.  The Producer, will have your full attention on this episode of Beyond the Lens presented by Diesel Films.