There are many things I enjoy about being at the Cleveland International Film Festival—seeing great films, talking with fellow film-lovers, seeing and hearing from filmmakers about their projects and leisurely strolling around downtown between rounds (E. 4th St. is a 10 minute walk away – there’s a ton of great places to get a drink or a bite to eat). Yesterday afternoon, I decided that after I got out of work at 6pm, I would head over to Tower City and catch a film in the 7:00 round (I saw Honey, I’m In Love…SO enjoyable!!). To pass some time, I bought a coffee and sat in the food court. Creepy as it may be, I really enjoy observing people; I find people—individuals and groups—to be fascinating. As I sat at my table, idly thumbing through the CIFF program guide, I was amazed by how many different conversations were going on around me and all of them were film-related! For instance:
· A man and his teenage son were sitting next to me talking about the Shorts Program they just saw.
· Two women were behind me discussing the films they wanted to catch tomorrow (Art & Copy and School Play..sounds good to me!)
· A young couple was standing a few feet away from me by a window trying to decide which films to see during the 7:00 round—Boogie or One Day In Africa. I wonder which one they chose!
· Another couple was discussing how much they loved the previous night’s screening of The Way We Get By.
At Tower City, the atmosphere is FILLED with buzz about anything and everything FILM-related! Where else would you hear so much talk about movies?? I’m in heaven!
Friday, March 27, 2009
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
"Silence Is a Killer"
I’ve come to the conclusion that I love documentaries! I guess my love of documentaries should come as no surprise to those who know me; the only channels I ever watch, it seems, are the History Channel and Discover Channel. I like learning about things I would have never given a moment’s thought to otherwise. For instance, last night I saw Sin By Silence, an American documentary by Olivia Klaus. The film takes the audience inside the California Institution for Women and introduces us to a group of women who are imprisoned for murdering their abusive husbands. Each woman has a story that is completely unique yet tragically t
he same—they were taught that they must be silent about the abuse they suffer from their husbands and for years these women endured the most horrendous abuse—both mental and physical. For years and years, these women were beaten, tied up, humiliated and almost killed by their violent husbands, yet they remained silent and endured it. But they could only endure it for so long.
All the women we meet in the film are convicted killers, and at first, I admit that all saw these women as were murderers; however, as I learned about their lives and watched them reflect on their past, I quickly decided that I couldn’t just label them as killers anymore. I now see them as women who had no way out as a horrific situation. I now see them as human beings who did what they had to do in order to simply survive. One of the women featured in the documentary, Brenda Clubine, was in prison for killing her husband. During her prison sentence in 1989, she created Convicted Women Against Abuse, a group that helps abused women speak out about abuse and realize that they aren’t alone. Since then, the women in CWAA have helped change laws for battered women and raise awareness about domestic violence. Amazingly, they did this all from inside the prison.
After the film, there was a Film Forum (yay!). The panelists included director Olivia Klaus, the film’s editor/co-producer Ann-Caryn Cleveland, Judge Michael Ryan from Cleveland’s Municipal Court, Vickie Grant from the Domestic Violence Center of Greater Cleveland and Brenda Clubine, the inmate featured in the film who was recently released from prison after new laws allowed judges to take into account her history of being abused (in the 1980s, judges and juries could not take a person’s past into account when making a decision; they could only look at the one instance that had lead the person to court.) When Brenda was introduced, the audience in the theatre gave her a standing ovation! It was a great moment!
During the Film Forum, Judge Ryan said that the impact of this film on young people is “immeasurable.” The key to stop the violence is prevention. Educating young people about domestic violence is the only way to stop the cycle, he said. Openly talking about domestic violence and abuse is vital.
Brenda Clubine commented, “You never know who in your life is affected by this. I implore you to ask. Tell them you’ll be there no matter what and that you’ll help them. That’s the biggest thing.”
Judge Ryan answered a question about what the city of Cleveland is doing to help stop this cycle of violence. He said that “the city as established a domestic violence task force and has employed detectives to investigate domestic violence claims.” Further, city judges talk to school groups and educate the children about abuse. He said, “We want to educate them before they become victims or offenders in our courtrooms.”
Some eerie statistics:
Every nine seconds of every minute of every day a woman is beaten.
One out of every three women is a victim of domestic violence.
According to Judge Ryan, 55-65% of all calls made to the Cleveland Police are domestic violence related.
Battering is the #1 cause of injury to women in the United States.
Needless to say, this film impacted me and educated me on a subject I really never thought too much about before. I’m so glad I saw the film and, as always, the Film Forum afterward enhanced my experience and the message of the documentary. I am so thrilled that I had the opportunity to experience this film and hear what experts in the field and the makers of the film had to say. The women featured in the documentary are inspirational; they made mistakes in the past, learned from these mistakes and now are working hard to change the future for the better. That’s something we can all take a lesson from.
he same—they were taught that they must be silent about the abuse they suffer from their husbands and for years these women endured the most horrendous abuse—both mental and physical. For years and years, these women were beaten, tied up, humiliated and almost killed by their violent husbands, yet they remained silent and endured it. But they could only endure it for so long. All the women we meet in the film are convicted killers, and at first, I admit that all saw these women as were murderers; however, as I learned about their lives and watched them reflect on their past, I quickly decided that I couldn’t just label them as killers anymore. I now see them as women who had no way out as a horrific situation. I now see them as human beings who did what they had to do in order to simply survive. One of the women featured in the documentary, Brenda Clubine, was in prison for killing her husband. During her prison sentence in 1989, she created Convicted Women Against Abuse, a group that helps abused women speak out about abuse and realize that they aren’t alone. Since then, the women in CWAA have helped change laws for battered women and raise awareness about domestic violence. Amazingly, they did this all from inside the prison.
After the film, there was a Film Forum (yay!). The panelists included director Olivia Klaus, the film’s editor/co-producer Ann-Caryn Cleveland, Judge Michael Ryan from Cleveland’s Municipal Court, Vickie Grant from the Domestic Violence Center of Greater Cleveland and Brenda Clubine, the inmate featured in the film who was recently released from prison after new laws allowed judges to take into account her history of being abused (in the 1980s, judges and juries could not take a person’s past into account when making a decision; they could only look at the one instance that had lead the person to court.) When Brenda was introduced, the audience in the theatre gave her a standing ovation! It was a great moment!
During the Film Forum, Judge Ryan said that the impact of this film on young people is “immeasurable.” The key to stop the violence is prevention. Educating young people about domestic violence is the only way to stop the cycle, he said. Openly talking about domestic violence and abuse is vital.
Brenda Clubine commented, “You never know who in your life is affected by this. I implore you to ask. Tell them you’ll be there no matter what and that you’ll help them. That’s the biggest thing.”
Judge Ryan answered a question about what the city of Cleveland is doing to help stop this cycle of violence. He said that “the city as established a domestic violence task force and has employed detectives to investigate domestic violence claims.” Further, city judges talk to school groups and educate the children about abuse. He said, “We want to educate them before they become victims or offenders in our courtrooms.”
Some eerie statistics:
Every nine seconds of every minute of every day a woman is beaten.
One out of every three women is a victim of domestic violence.
According to Judge Ryan, 55-65% of all calls made to the Cleveland Police are domestic violence related.
Battering is the #1 cause of injury to women in the United States.
Needless to say, this film impacted me and educated me on a subject I really never thought too much about before. I’m so glad I saw the film and, as always, the Film Forum afterward enhanced my experience and the message of the documentary. I am so thrilled that I had the opportunity to experience this film and hear what experts in the field and the makers of the film had to say. The women featured in the documentary are inspirational; they made mistakes in the past, learned from these mistakes and now are working hard to change the future for the better. That’s something we can all take a lesson from.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Ending a fantastic day
Well, I just got home from a great afternoon/evening of film watching at the Cleveland International Film Festival. I saw three great films tonight—an animated French film called La Reine soleil or Princess of the Sun, an American documentary called Ask Not and a Danish drama called Dansen or Dancers. I really enjoyed all three films.
Princess of the Sun is about young Egyptian princess who runs away from home, meets her future husband Tut, and overcomes many obstacles to save Egypt from its enemies. There were many children in the audience and, although the film is in French with English subtitles, it seemed like the kids were so enthralled by what was on the screen that they didn’t really mind that they couldn’t understand what was said. Overall, Princess of the Sun is a great children’s film. I have a soft spot for animated children’s films (huge Disney fan here!) so this film was a great kick-off to my night.
Ask Not is a film that will stay with me for a while. The documentary discusses how the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, originally instituted under the Clinton Administration as a compromise to end discrimination against LGBT servicemen and women, actually hurts, rather than helps, the people it is suppose to protect. The policy forces LGBT people in the military to choose between two
options: lead double lives or be discharged from the military. This documentary follows a few soldiers and ex-soldiers as they tell how the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy affected them.
Princess of the Sun is about young Egyptian princess who runs away from home, meets her future husband Tut, and overcomes many obstacles to save Egypt from its enemies. There were many children in the audience and, although the film is in French with English subtitles, it seemed like the kids were so enthralled by what was on the screen that they didn’t really mind that they couldn’t understand what was said. Overall, Princess of the Sun is a great children’s film. I have a soft spot for animated children’s films (huge Disney fan here!) so this film was a great kick-off to my night.
Ask Not is a film that will stay with me for a while. The documentary discusses how the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, originally instituted under the Clinton Administration as a compromise to end discrimination against LGBT servicemen and women, actually hurts, rather than helps, the people it is suppose to protect. The policy forces LGBT people in the military to choose between two
options: lead double lives or be discharged from the military. This documentary follows a few soldiers and ex-soldiers as they tell how the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy affected them. After the film, there was a Film Forum with three panelists, including the director Johnny Symons. Symons commented that “having this policy [Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell] in place means people have to lie” about who they truly are. He went on to say that “The United States has the reputation of having one of the most integrated workplace environments…except in the military.” Many, many, MANY countries, including England, have no ban against homosexuals enlisting in their militaries; yet the US, currently facing low enlistment numbers, would rather lower its standards, such as I.Q., than allow very qualified homosexuals to serve. In fact, one gay man that was featured in the documentary is fluent in five languages, including Arabic, and was still discharged solely due to his sexuality.
During the Film Forum, moderator Tim Downing, board member of Human Rights Campaign and the CIFF, commented that President Obama has asked for a study to be conducted of all NATO allies where no ban exists against LGBT in the military. With the results of the study, Obama will present his case to Congress about lifting the ban. According to Downing, this will be voted on after the 2010 elections. After I have seen Symons’ masterful and eye-opening documentary, I will definitely pay attention to how this story continues.
My last film for the night, Dancers, was sooo good. It’s about a dance instructor, Annika, who meets a man with a very shady past. The film was so intriguing and suspenseful, and the acting was suburb! It was fascinating to see how the order and structure of the dance floor completely contrasted Annika’s personal life. Very artfully done.
Overall, what a great night! I was very excited to attend the Ask Not Film Forum. It was an honor to hear the director himself talk about his film and an issue he obviously cares a lot about.
A side note: In just four days, the CIFF has already reach $14,000 in contributions, which is almost half of its $33,000 goal! Also, attendance numbers have set new records! 4 days! Completely amazing!
I’m looking forward to heading back down to the CIFF tomorrow night. I’m having trouble deciding what I want to see…WAY too many great options!
My last film for the night, Dancers, was sooo good. It’s about a dance instructor, Annika, who meets a man with a very shady past. The film was so intriguing and suspenseful, and the acting was suburb! It was fascinating to see how the order and structure of the dance floor completely contrasted Annika’s personal life. Very artfully done.
Overall, what a great night! I was very excited to attend the Ask Not Film Forum. It was an honor to hear the director himself talk about his film and an issue he obviously cares a lot about.
A side note: In just four days, the CIFF has already reach $14,000 in contributions, which is almost half of its $33,000 goal! Also, attendance numbers have set new records! 4 days! Completely amazing!
I’m looking forward to heading back down to the CIFF tomorrow night. I’m having trouble deciding what I want to see…WAY too many great options!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
First night = awesome.
It’s Here! The 33rd Cleveland International Film Festival began on Thursday and last night I experienced the festival in all its excitement for the first time. The buzz of excitement and joy inside Tower City is immediately contagious. Everyone around you is there for one common purpose: to enjoy wonderful films at a wonderful place surrounded by wonderful people. And the people are WONDERFUL! Every person I encountered last night—from the jovial waitress at the Hard Rock Café (yum!) to the young woman behind the ticket booth to all the festival staff members—were so extremely friendly and lively that it was hard not to be bursting through my own seams with excitement, as well.
Briefly, the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) is the flagship event of the Cleveland Film Society. Since 1977, the Cleveland Film Society has presented the CIFF every spring. Since its humble beginnings of only 8 film screenings, the CIFF has steadily grown to feature over 140 feature films and more than 170 short subject films from more than 60 countries and all 7 continents. It’s like travelling the world without ever leaving Cleveland! The Cleveland Film Society’s vision is to be “a leader in helping the world discover the power of the film arts to educate, entertain and celebrate the human experience.”
Briefly, the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) is the flagship event of the Cleveland Film Society. Since 1977, the Cleveland Film Society has presented the CIFF every spring. Since its humble beginnings of only 8 film screenings, the CIFF has steadily grown to feature over 140 feature films and more than 170 short subject films from more than 60 countries and all 7 continents. It’s like travelling the world without ever leaving Cleveland! The Cleveland Film Society’s vision is to be “a leader in helping the world discover the power of the film arts to educate, entertain and celebrate the human experience.”
Last night, I attended the screening of La Belle Personne, a lovely French film directed by Christophe Honore. The film showcases the uncertainty and turbulence of adolescent love. The young actors were fantastic and the soundtrack, mostly featuring the hauntingly beautiful songs of Nick Drake, was perfect. I’m so glad that this lovely film was my kickoff to my festival experiences. I’m looking forward to MANY more films and events this week!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
