Date: Wed, 25 Jan 2012 17:43:10 -0500
From: Lesley Landis
Subject: 2 Powerful Films for Black History Month
In February, the Chatham County Arts Council (“ChathamArts”) Sustainable Cinema Series honors Black History Month by showing two powerful films. Mark your calendars for this special SUNDAY Event, Feb. 26th, 2 pm, Fearrington Village Barn, Hwy 15-501 midway between Chapel Hill & Pittsboro
“THE LOVING STORY” by director & producer Nancy Buirski; Producer & Editor Elisabeth Haviland James (documentary feature) about “Loving v. Virginia”, a watershed civil rights case in which the United States Supreme Court declared Virginia’s anti-miscegenation statute unconstitutional in 1967.
A racially charged criminal trial and a heartrending love story converge in this documentary about the Lovings, an interracial couple who fell in love and married at a tumultuous social and political time in American history, yet nevertheless brought about change where previously no one else could. Through stunning archival footage of the Lovings, the film revisits this public battle through the eyes of a private couple who simply wanted to have the right to get married and live in the place they called home.
“The Loving Story” is produced by Nancy Buirski’s production company Augusta Films, LLC, in association with HBO Documentaries. The film was made possible in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Buirski is the Founder and was the Director of the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival. Producer/Editor Elisabeth Haviland James is based in Durham, NC, where her company, Thornapple Films, is headquartered. Additional local crew members include: Cinematographers Rex Miller and Steve Milligan; Sound: Mark Barroso. Co-producers Nancy Buirski and Elizabeth Haviland James will be in attendance for Q&A if possible.
“The Loving Story” screening is sponsored by The Southern Documentary Fund, an organization that encourages documentary media projects made within or about the American South. Through services like fiscal sponsorship, SDF aims to connect people, ideas, and resources — furthering their goal of growing a community of documentary artists.
“What astonishes in Buirski’s docu is not just the quantity and quality of the black-and-white 16mm footage, but its unpressured candor, particularly in the harsh light of current media feeding frenzies…The Lovings’ unprepossessing affection, evident in every frame of their homemovies, forms a perfect intimate counterpoint to the historical upheaval and ultimate rendering of justice.” VARIETY REVIEW, 05/11
shown with….
“WOLF CALL” directed by Rob Underhill; Starring Mike Wiley
“Wolf Call” Raleigh Director Rob Underhill’s 12-minute
narrative transports us back to 1956 when William Bradford Huie of “Look”
magazine talks with the two men acquitted in the boy’s murder, Roy Bryant
Jr. and J.W. Milam. The previous year, 14-year old Emmett Till from Chicago
had gone missing in Money, Mississippi. Later, the boy’s mutilated body was
found in a river. This historic drama became a lightning rod for moral
outrage and pivotal in inspiring a generation of young people to work for
social change in the 1950s. “Wolf Call” is the Winner of seven festival
awards, four nominations, dozens of official selections
and recently nominated for Outstanding Independent Short Film by the Black
Reel Awards. Director Rob Underhill, Actor Mike Wiley and
Cinematographer Aravind Ragupathi in attendance for Q&A.
Director Rob Underhill has written, directed, and produced dozens of short
films, numerous music videos, and several feature films. WOLF CALL
stars Mike Wiley (a Chatham County resident) in multiple roles. Wiley is
the winner of Best Actor awards in 2009 & 2010 for his performance in
‘Empty Space,’ including Best Actor at the 25th Black International Cinema
Berlin. He is the 2010 Lehman Brady Visiting Joint Chair Professor in
Documentary Studies and American Studies at Duke University and the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. In addition to his numerous
school and community performances, he has also appeared on Discovery
Channel, The Learning Channel and National Geographic Channel.
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*** Purchase Advance tickets $8.00 online before 02/26/12 at:
http://www.chathamarts.org/sustainablecinema/
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(Please print receipt for ticket. Admission will be $10 at door day of screening) *****
Lesley Landis
President, Chatham County Arts Council <http://chathamarts.org/>