by Justin Krebs
The Los Angeles chapter of Drinking Liberally had a special guest host on Tuesday night: Robert Greenwald, of Brave New Films, whose filmmaker activism has given us Iraq For Sale, the "Fox Attacks" series of shorts and, most recently, "When the Saints Go Marching In," marking the second anniversary of Katrina, which he screened and discussed with the crowded room of liberal Angelenos.
You can see the video here:
It's a natural for Robert to show his latest short to a DL crowd -- because Brave New Films doesn't just produce films...they socially organize around films, giving us the chance to become more than "viewers." We become participants in a conversation, activists for a cause and members of a movement...and for Robert, as for DL, the key ingredient is the community.
When Iraq For Sale was released on DVD, 4,500 house parties screened it in one week. Just as powerful films about Iraq were released on the big screen (The War Tapes) and HBO (Baghdad ER). But what do you do when the lights come up in the movie theaer, or when the credits roll on premium cable? It's not easy to start a conversation with a stranger in the cinema...and too often the energy of the experience dissipates on your walk through the parking lot.
Brave New Films offers an alternative. In Robert's own words:
Working with Drinking Liberally is part of BNF's DNA. Our ongoing commitment is to screen our work in every possible venue from church to school to pizza parlor to bowling alley to of course, Drinking Liberally. The shorts and the films serve to bring people together and in the process, community begins to emerge, activists energize others and our stories serve as means to encourage people to take action. Screening the films and shorts in group situations has a consistent impact in terms of getting more focus, more commitment, more passion for change from the group social dynamic.
Iraq For Sale is just one example of a new model for organizing around films (one that chapters of Screening Liberally are exploring further every month)...the happy hour gathering to view "When the Saints Go Marching In" and remember the impact of Katrina is another. In a private home, or a crowded bar, the effect is the same: you're not watching alone...and soon you are doing more than just watching, and you're doing it together.
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