If there's anyone who has reason to complain about gas prices, it's Vincent Vittorio.
Within a month and a half, the independent film producer and UF alumnus drove 9,000 miles with his film crew to conduct interviews for their political documentary, "An Inconvenient Tax."
The feature-length documentary takes a look into the history of the United States' tax system and compares it to those of foreign countries.
Vittorio hopes to shed light on what he said is one of the most misunderstood - and most important - aspects of American society.
"This is a topic that really hasn't been touched," he said. "We felt confident in our ability to bring an idea that people truly don't understand to the floor."
Although the crew of five filmmakers only began filming the documentary in June, Vittorio expects it to be completed by election time in November.
He said because voters are directly affected by taxes, unlike many of the other campaign issues discussed by the media, he hopes the documentary will help them when it comes time to cast their ballots.
"The government tells us how to live our lives through the tax code," Vittorio said. "We're making sure that people have a little better insight into our economy and tax system before they make a decision on something they don't understand."
He said misunderstandings about the proposed FairTax, which would replace income, payroll and estate taxes with a national retail sales tax, is what spurred him to create the documentary.
"It's a shame that people are supporting something they don't understand," he said.
But the challenge isn't providing people with information, he said. It's providing a objective representation of such a controversial issue.
Vittorio said the crew's biggest obstacle was convincing people that he and his crew did not have an agenda.
"Everyone thinks we're making a Michael Moore film," he said. "But that's not at all what we're trying to do."
To keep a balanced portrayal, they interviewed everyday people, economists, professors and politicians from both ends of the political spectrum.
The crew traveled all over the Northeast to meet with big names such as CEO and magazine editor Steve Forbes and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee.
And with less than two months to inform Americans on one of the most important political issues, they had no time to waste.
On some days, Vittorio said, they would have to wake up at 4 a.m., drive all day, conduct an in-depth interview and then drive home.
"Because of the pressing time frame, we had to jump into it and not look back," he said.
Though this is his first political film, Vittorio has produced many other independent films with his team from Life Is My Movie Entertainment, a production company he founded in Gainesville.
He has had to postpone other documentaries, including one about a person who survived the Holocaust at age 6, to be able to complete "An Inconvenient Tax" by election time.
After conducting two more interviews, the crew expects to complete filming this week.
"It's been quite a journey, but we've come full circle," Vittorio said. "We hope that the film will inform people and get them excited about what they're watching."
