It's a brisk and foggy February day in Iowa and Houra Sadeghi walks down a quiet tree-lined street toward a house with a Bernie Sanders sign in the front lawn. The Iowa Precinct Caucuses will take place later today and Sadeghi is knocking on doors to encourage people to participate. She knocks on the door and speaks with a man who says he is a Sanders supporter and will definitely caucus later in the day. She smiles. For the first time in more than 20 doors, she's encountered a human. Sadeghi, who was born in Iran, spent more than 3 months knocking on doors and making phone calls as a volunteer for Bernie Sanders. "Obama talks about this a lot how Muslims are part of the community, but if these people don't witness that, then they feel like ‘What is Obama talking about?’" she said. "I feel like it's important to show that Muslims aren't a representation of ISIS. No, they can actually be educated. No, they can actually be politically involved.” Shot in the month before the Iowa caucuses, this film aims to provide viewers with a deeper understanding of what happened in the 2016 Democratic primary campaign. The vast majority of media coverage in this election cycle focused on the candidates and campaign strategy. With a moment-driven approach, this film instead focuses on the important personal stories of six campaign volunteers, including Sadeghi. The aim is to show what these volunteers actually do when they volunteer and examine why they have chosen to participate. The common thread among these campaign volunteers was optimism. They believed their work influences the election. The film’s title, Believers, is an homage to that common thread. Directed, shot, produced and edited by Ray Whitehouse. Thank You: Volunteers: Vikki Brown, Travis Shephard, Susan Vallem, Greg Middents, Houra Sadeghi, Bridget Saffold, Frantz Whitfield, Marvin Innes, Steven Fox Thesis Committee: Steven King (chair), Daniel Kreiss, Ed O'Keefe Campaign Staff: Gina Baldwin, Pavitra Abraham, the entire Hillary for Iowa team in Waterloo, IA, Chris Klarich, Tavis Hall, the entire Bernie for Iowa team in Waterloo, IA Family: Jay, Patty and Sarah Whitehouse Partner: Carolyn Van Houten Advisors: Pat Davison, Lisa Krantz, Chad Stevens, Dustin Chambers, Ash Adams, Ross Taylor, Tegan Johnston, Heidi Hennick-Kaminski, Chad Stevens' Spring 2016 Narratives Class Lodging and Moral Support: Grant Uding, Michael Zamora, Brian Powers, Bob Moore Financial Support: UNC, Yunghi Kim, The Park Family Logistics and Information: Jason Noble, Dave and Deb Nagle, Carl Busch at UV Films, Mark Morris at KXEL