Private Project

HOME FROM WORK

In tourist towns across the United States, where housing is scarce, a growing number of workers have few options but to live in employer-provided housing. HOME FROM WORK follows two workers caught in this precarious limbo where losing a job could mean losing their home, and an employer grappling with his responsibility to his employees. As the film uncovers the legal gray areas of employee housing, it draws parallels to the company towns of the past, where employers maintained unchecked control over workers' lives. HOME FROM WORK exposes the emotional and economic toll of a system without safety nets while raising urgent questions about the future of labor rights in the face of increasing economic inequality.

  • Alex Fleming-McNeil
    Director
  • Michael Beuttler
    Director
  • Aurora Fackler-Adams
    Production Assistant
  • Dylan Hurley
    Sound Design
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    11 minutes 14 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 29, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    4,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Alex Fleming-McNeil, Michael Beuttler

Alex Fleming-McNeil and Michael Beuttler are an American documentary filmmaking duo focused on the intersection of capitalism, labor, and power within modern institutions. With backgrounds in political theory and the philosophy of science, they bring a shared, critical vision to their filmmaking — using individual stories to explore societal changes on a broad scale.

Alex is the director of two short films—his most recent, Back at the Foot of the Tower, played at festivals across Washington State and the Pacific Northwest. Michael co-produced and edited the feature documentary You Can’t Kill Meme (Hulu, 2021) and produced the feature documentary Stories From The Lighthouse (2024).

Their work seeks to reveal the often invisible dynamics of power in the modern world, with HOME FROM WORK being the first entry in a larger project exploring the shifting dynamics of labor and power in the 21st century.

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Director Statement

HOME FROM WORK began from conversations on Orcas Island, where Alex lives and witnesses friends struggle with the neverending housing issues tied to their jobs. Similar stories emerged from travels to places like Moab, Ojai, and Telluride — tourist towns in the United States where the only housing available is often employer-provided. This growing trend, seen as a solution to skyrocketing rents in tourism-driven economies, carries a dangerous consequence: when your home depends on your job, losing one could mean losing both.

As we filmed, we discovered that employee housing exists in a legal gray area, where tenant protections are virtually non-existent. Workers have no legal recourse if they are evicted, leaving them exposed to the decisions of their employers. Even well-meaning employers are trapped in a system that forces them to control not just their workers' jobs, but their homes and lives. This setup brings to mind the exploitative "company towns" of the past, where employers held unchecked power over their workers.

HOME FROM WORK asks a critical question: are we witnessing the return of "company towns," and what does this mean for workers’ rights in an era of growing economic inequality? By exploring the lives of workers caught in this precarious balance — and an employer striving to do right by his employees — we expose the widening power imbalance between employers and workers. As economic inequality continues to rise, HOME FROM WORK shines a light on a system that deepens the divide between those who hold power and those left vulnerable.