Where:   The Shore Institute of the Contemporary Arts (SICA)
                 20 Third Avenue
                 Long Branch, New Jersey 07740    directions

Admission:  $7 door charge / $5 ffs members

ABOUT THE SERIES:

The Freedom Film Society has always been dedicated to bringing the best in documentary films to the Jersey Shore. In furtherance of that effort, we are pleased to announce our new monthly documentary series,   "ˇWe Want To Know!"

Over the course of the next months, subjects from all walks of life will be focused upon.

The first four nights of the series are outlined below:

March 30, 2006

Inside Out In The Open
Directed by Alan Roth
60 min.

Inside Out In The Open focuses on the revolutionary developments in jazz music that evolved in the early 1960's, expanding the boundaries in rhythm, sound, harmonics, and collective improvisation, with an expansive openness and deep emotion. It's a tradition that continues to this day, still filled with creative energy and affecting newer and younger listeners. The only voices are of the musicians themselves, speaking about creating music, influences, memories of the 60's and more.

An important contribution to the history of "jazz music," in the shadow of the shortcomings of the Ken Burns/PBS jazz series.

*** A Q&A will be held with director Alan Roth after the screening. ***

Featured musicians the Daniel Carter/Tim Keiper Duo will perform live.

For additional information on the film: http://www.insideoutintheopen.net

April 27, 2006

PHILLIP RODRIGUEZ DOUBLE FEATURE NIGHT

Film # 1:  Mixed Feelings: San Diego/Tijuana
                Directed by Philip Rodriguez
                27 min.

"Although neighbors, Mexico and the United States are extremes within Western civilization." -Octavio Paz-.

Philip Rodriguez brings forth a documentary about the San Diego/Tijuana region and its inevitable transnational future. Conversations with scholars, planners and architects from both cities open a window into an unprecedented dialogue now occurring on the U.S./Mexican border. The film reaches into issues including architecture, urbanism and rapid globalization. It also offers a rare and insightful meditation on the future impact that Latino civilization will have on U.S. cities.

This unique piece successfully challenges the contemporary documentary form. Scored by a new music (Nortec) now emerging out of the Tijuana region, the documentary makes much use of digital animation and multiple paneled images.

For additional information on the film: http://www.mixedfeelings.org

Film # 2:  Los Angeles Now
                Directed by Phillip Rodriguez
                56 min.

Once the whitest city in America, Los Angeles is now the most multicultural city in the history of the world. Once an empty, bucolic space, L.A. is now a disorienting megalopolis. Yet the city’s cultural transformation has gone largely overlooked by the media, the movies, and even by the many of the city’s residents themselves. The entertainment industry continues to churn out counterfeit and outmoded images of L.A. while ignoring the many new stories emerging from the city’s increasingly diverse population.

The issues explored in Los Angeles Now are relevant well beyond the borders of the city. Many agree that Los Angeles serves as a diagnostic for other urban centers. Cities from Hartford to Las Vegas inevitably face the influx of immigrants, the cultural confrontations, and the urban sprawl. If the future were a place, Los Angeles would be it. Los Angeles Now provides a much-needed starting point for imagining our American future.

For additional information on the film: http://www.losangelesfilm.org

May 25, 2006

ScaredSacred
Directed by Velcrow Ripper
104 min.

What, if anything, can be found that is beautiful and enriching in places teetering on the edge of apocalypse? Velcrow Ripper set out on a unique pilgrimage.

Visiting the "Ground Zeros" of the planet, he asks if it's possible to find hope in the darkest moments of human history.

Ripper travels to the minefields of Cambodia; war-torn Afghanistan; the toxic wasteland of Bhopal; post- 9/11 New York; Bosnia; Hiroshima; Israel and Palestine.

This powerful documentary captures his five-year odyssey to discover if humanity can transform the "scared" into the "sacred." Its stunning footage, haunting memories, engaging, first- person narration, inspirational stories and evocative soundscape create an exquisite portrait of a search for meaning in times of turmoil.

For additional information on the film: http://www.scaredsacred.org

June 29, 2006

The Education of Shelby Knox
Directed by Marion Lipschutz & Rose Rosenblatt
75 min.

Shelby Knox is a 15-year-old Southern Baptist and God-fearing daughter of conservative Republicans in Lubbock, Texas.

When she finds that Lubbock has some of the highest rates of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases in the state, and the high schools teach abstinence as the only safe sex, she becomes an unlikely advocate for sex education.

By the time the campaign brings in a fight for a gay-straight alliance, she has profoundly changed her political and spiritual views, declaring herself a feminist and a liberal Christian.

Politics, family and faith aren’t as predictable as the red state/blue state divide would suggest.

For additional information on the film: http://www.incite-pictures.com/Shelby_Knox.html
Also see: http://www.incite-pictures.com/resources/Shelby.pdf