Waiting to Inhale

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Waiting to Inhale

Director: Jed Riffe
Filmmaker in person
The medical properties of marijuana have been known and employed by many cultures for millennia; and its use was legal in the U.S. from 1860 to 1937. Currently, 10 states, including California, have passed laws with medical marijuana provisions. Yet under federal law, its cultivation, possession and use for any purpose, including therapeutic relief from critical or terminal illness, remain illegal. WAITING TO INHALE is a quietly powerful film exploring the battle between patients, doctors, activists and the U.S. government over the legalization of medical marijuana, but is not an exercise in propaganda for either side of the conflict. Instead, it creates a dynamic portrait of passionate individuals engaged in a struggle whose stakes are nothing short of life and death. (2005, 77 min.)
Showing: May 19, 6:30pm, MTC

Strange Culture

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Strange Culture

Director:  Lynn Hershman Leeson
Through a dramatic recreation alternating with interviews and news footage, STRANGE CULTURE presents the circumstances in the strange case of Steve Kurtz, an Associate Professor of Art at SUNY Buffalo and a member of Critical Art Ensemble, a collective of five artists whose work questions the relationship between art commerce and biotechnology. On May 11, 2004, on the eve of the opening of their show "Free Range Grains" at MASS MoCA, Mr. Kurtz was confronted-simultaneously- by the sudden death of his wife and the suspicion by the FBI that he was both her murderer and a bioterrorist.  As actors Thomas J. Ryan and Tilda Swinton "play" Steve and Hope Kurtz and comment, as themselves, upon their roles, the real Steve Kurtz and other, actual players recount the history of his case, which the government, ever- watchful of art groups which seek to question Corporatism, turned at its discretion from a civil to a criminal dispute. STRANGE CULTURE is at once a chilling and a hopeful film.  With Peter Coyote and Josh Kornbluth.  Original score by The Residents. (2007, 75 min.)
Showing: May 17, 8pm, Crown Hall
May 20, 1:30pm, MTC

State of Fear

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

State of Fear

Director: Pamela Yates
Director, Producer Paco di
Onis and Editor Peter Kinoy in person
How can an open society balance demands for security with democracy? Based on the findings of the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission, STATE OF FEAR is an essential film for our time. Blending personal testimony, history and archival footage, it tells the story of escalating violence in Peru and how the fear of terror undermined their democracy, making the Andean nation a virtual dictatorship where official corruption replaced the rule of law. After terrorist attacks by Shining Path insurgents provoked a military occupation of the countryside, military justice replaced civil authority, widespread abuses by the Peruvian Army went unpunished, and the terrorism continued to spread. Nearly 70,000 civilians eventually died at the hands of Shining Path insurgents and the Peruvian military. (2005, 94 min., in English and Spanish with English subtitles.)
Showing: May 18, 8:30pm, Crown Hall  May 19, 4pm, Crown Hall

Last Best Hope

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Last BestHope:

A True Story of Escape, Evasion and Remembrance

Director: Matt Hames
"Going down in enemy territory was probably the last thing on my mind."  But that is exactly what happened to First Lieutenant Bill Grosvenor when his P-47 Thunderbolt crashed in occupied Belgium on November 30, 1943. Within minutes, Grosvenor was in the hands of the Belgian Resistance - ordinary men and women who acted with extraordinary courage to save and repatriate hundreds of Allied airmen stranded within their borders. Nearly sixty years later, he returns to Belgium in an emotionally charged pilgrimage with his wife and son to explore the motivations - ethical, spiritual and ideological - that propel one stranger to help another despite the risk to his or her own life and everything dear. (2006, 90 min.)
Showing: May 19, 10am, Abalone Room

Hacking Democracy

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Hacking Democracy

Director:  Simon Ardizzone, Russell Michaels and Robert Carrillo Cohen
Filmmaker in person
Electronic voting machines count about 87% of the votes cast in America today. But are they reliable? Are they safe from tampering? From a current congressional hearing to persistent media reports that suggest misuse of data and even outright fraud, concerns over the integrity of electronic voting are growing by the day. And if the voting process is not secure, neither is America's democracy. This cautionary documentary exposes gaping holes in the security of America's electronic voting system. (2006, 82 min.)
Showing: May 18, 1pm, St. Anthony's

Dark Water Rising

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Dark Water Rising:

The Truth About Hurricane Katrina

Animal Rescues
Director: Mike Shiley
Over 50,000 dogs and cats were stranded in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina as FEMA required that all animals be left behind in the mandatory evacuation. This forced separation created America's first ever major animal rescue. A small and dedicated group of rescuers from around the world risked their lives to sledgehammer down doors, brave toxic floodwaters and dodge corrupt cops in a race against time to rescue up to over 10,000 trapped and starving animals. DARK WATER RISING is a powerful and touching document of hope and survival in the wake of one of the worst natural disasters in American history. (2006, 80 min.)
Showing:May 18, 10am, Crown Hall

Free Spirits

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Free Spirits

Director: Bruce Geisler
Filmmaker in person
This just might be the most comprehensive, in-depth film yet made about the rise and fall of a modern day American commune. The Renaissance Community of Western Massachusetts was not shy about self- documentation. The sheer volume of archival footage following the twenty year odyssey of this bunch is astounding. When 17- year-old Michael Metelica (Rapunzel), high school and Hell's Angels dropout and spiritual visionary, retreated with eight impoverished teenage friends to a treehouse in 1968, they never imagined it would grow into one of the largest and most controversial communes of its era. At its peak, it boasted 350 members, real estate in five towns, an airplane, a rock band and a million dollar per year income. Many stayed a decade or more, committing their youth and worldly possessions to creating a model of brotherhood they hoped would be a model for the world. For some, it was the highlight of their lives. For others, it was a nightmare. The Renaissance Community survived the intense hostility of the world around it only to fall prey to internal forces. (2006, 99 min.)
Showing: May 19, 8pm, St. Anthony's

Genghis Blues

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Genghis Blues

Director: Adrian and Roko Belic
Filmmaker in person
Is there - could there ever be - another film like GENGHIS BLUES? We doubt it. It has only grown over the last eight years since its initial release in its power to delight and move its audiences. For those unfamiliar with this singular documentary, the following can only barely describe, and in no way capture, its marvelous essence:  Paul Pena, a blind blues singer and guitarist who played with the likes of T-Bone Walker, John Lee Hooker and Bonnie Raitt, heard a sound on his short wave radio which was like no other. What he heard, the art of Khoomei, or throat singing, a seemingly impossible form which produces multiple vocal tones simultaneously, led Pena, along with a group of unforgettable fellow travelers, to the forgotten land of Tuva to live among the descendants of Genghis Khan and to compete in their triennial Khoomei contest. Even if you have seen this film before, do not miss this opportunity to see it in the company of one of its makers, Adrian Belic, who is also screening his new film BEYOND THE CALL in this year's festival. (1999, 88 min.)
Showing: May 18, 8pm, St. Anthony's

Everything's Cool

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Everything's Cool

Director: Judith Helfand and Daniel B. Gold
Filmmaker in person
EVERYTHING'S COOL comes to Mendocino fresh from its North American Premiere at Sundance. Described by its makers as a "toxic comedy," this brilliant documentary is about the most dangerous chasm ever to emerge between scientific understanding and political action - Global Warming. While industry nay-sayers sing what just might be their swan song of pseudo- scientific deception, a group of self-appointed global warming messengers are on a high stakes quest to find the iconic image, the magic language, the points of leverage that will at last create the political will to move the U.S. from its dirty fossil-fueled economy to the new clean energy economy. In no way is EVERYTHING'S COOL a mere appendage to AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH. It is very much its own film, especially in its use of humor to make its points. (2006, 95 min.)
Showing: May 17, 8pm, MTC

Beyond the Call

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Beyond the Call

Director: Adrian Belic
Filmmaker and Editor in person
This breath-catching documentary follows the humanitarian mission of three Americans, Ed Artis, Jim Laws and Walt Ratterman, who call themselves Knightsbridge. As in GENGHIS BLUES, another of Adrian Belic's films presented in this year's festival, we follow a complex and unforgettable band of travelers who journey to a remote place. Rather, in BEYOND THE CALL, we should say places:  Afghanistan, Cambodia, the Thailand-Burma border and the Southern Philippines."These are our rules:  We're not in the gun business. We don't want to change their politics or their religion. It must be high venture. It must be humanitarian. And it's got to be in an area where few would ever go. If it doesn't hit these criteria, we're not interested." - Ed Artis (Edited by Jennifer Chinlund, 2006, 81 min.)
Showing: May 18, 6pm, Crown Hall

A Lawyer Walks Into a Bar

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

A Lawyer Walks Into a Bar...

Director: Eric Chaikin
Alarmed by the grim spectre of an ever- increasing volume of lawyers in this state, there are some who might wish that prospective practitioners would engage themselves in Crossing the Bar (after Tennyson) instead of passing it.  Whatever your sentiments on this subject, A LAWYER WALKS INTO A BAR... is both an arch and sympathetic, as well as a very funny, examination of the trials and fortunes of four recent, and one not-so-recent, law school graduates as they seek to pass the California State Bar Exam, the most difficult in the United States.  These particular tales are told against the general setting of our current society, a nation of laws with a culture ever more litigious, which has been known, on rare occasions, to view members of the profession as mendacious and meretricious scum. (2007, 92 min.)
Showing: May 17, 8pm, Abalone Room

Letters from the Other Side

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Letters from the Other Side

Director: Heather Courtney
Filmmaker in person "How many more deaths does it take for the U.S. government to do something? Let it be on their conscience that since our tragedy many more have died and many more will die."  So says Laura in a video letter to the U.S. government, speaking about her husband who died trying to cross the U.S./Mexico border in search of work. LETTERS FROM THE OTHER SIDE interweaves video letters carried across the border with their intimate stories of women left behind in post-NAFTA Mexico. Focusing on a side of the immigration story rarely told by the media or touched upon in our national debate, LETTERS paints a complex portrait of families torn apart by economics, communities dying at the hands of globalization and governments incapable or unwilling to do anything about it. (2005, 75 min., in Spanish with English subtitles.)
FREE Showing: May 20, 4pm, St. Anthony's