Reel Dialogue Documentary Film Series Presents “Women Documenting Life,” An Evening of Screenings and Discussion
Celebrating the 40th Anniversary of New Days Films
Join us on April 29 for an exciting evening of film and dialogue as Reel Dialogue Documentary Film Series presents Women Documenting Life, a celebration of women filmmakers to mark the 40th Anniversary of New Day Films Distribution Coop. The event will take place in the Lang Recital Hall at Hunter College, 4th Floor, North Building (69th Street between Lexington and Park Avenues, NYC) from 5 to 9:30 p.m. Presenting films include Sperm Donor X by Deirdre Fishel, Bag It by Susan Beraza, and Never Enough by Kelly Anderson. The filmmakers will be present and refreshments will be served. The evening is co-sponsored by New York Women in Film and Television.
“Today’s documentary filmmaker has become the weathervane of the 21st century, uncovering political conflicts and exploring cutting edge issues. The Reel Dialogue Film Series celebrates documentary film making, and delivers an unmatched evening of free access to new films as well as a chance to hear from the filmmakers that created them.” said Tami Gold, Series Producer. “This evening in particular will be special because we are celebrating the 40th Anniversary of New Days Films and women filmmakers.”
The Reel Dialogue Documentary Film Series is curated by Tami Gold, Martin Lucas and David Pavlosky — all from Hunter College. The undergraduate programs at Hunter College’s Department of Film & Media Studies combine critical media analysis with creative practice using a mix of contemporary media forms. Hunter’s Integrated Media Arts M.F.A. Program educates multi-disciplinary media professionals, socially aware and competent in the diverse range media skills necessary for today’s digital media environment.
New Day Films is a filmmaker-run distribution company providing award-winning films to educators since 1971. Democratically run by more than 100 filmmaker members, New Day delivers over 150 titles that illuminate, challenge and inspire.
New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) is a nonprofit membership organization for professional women in film, television and digital media. A champion of women’s rights, achievements and points of view in the entertainment industry, NYWIFT is an educational forum for media professionals, and a network for the exchange of information and resources.
More about the films:
Sperm Donor X by Deirdre Fishel
It’s not like most little girls growing up in the 1970’s and 1980’s thought, “oh I can’t wait to grow up and pick my sperm over the Internet.” But the truth is right now only 6% of American children will grow up in a “traditional family,” and we’re lucky to have some of the best reproductive options worldwide. Director Deirdre Fishel takes an intimate, behind-the-scenes look at her own experiences and that of three other diverse women as they go on a trip they never imagined — to try to have children solo using donor sperm. A powerful tool for courses in Psychology, Sociology, Women’s Studies and Gender Studies, the film documents women willing to struggle with parents, money, one with a new boyfriend, another with her African American Baptist church, in order not to miss parenting. In following these women over years, as they move from fear and self-consciousness to gratitude and celebration , the documentary adds depth and insight into the new options facing women today. From the strangeness and humor of picking an anonymous donor to the creation of joyous families of both biological and adopted children, Sperm Donor X: A Different Conception provides a powerful challenge to old ideas about making a family.
Bag It by Suzan Beraza
Is your life too plastic?
Bag It is a story that follows Jeb Berrier, an average American guy who is admittedly not a “tree hugger,” who makes a pledge to stop using plastic bags. This simple action gets Jeb thinking about all kinds of plastic as he embarks on a global tour to unravel the complexities of our plastic world. When Jeb’s journey takes a personal twist, we see how our crazy-for-plastic world has finally caught up to us and what we can do about it. Today. Right now. The film that examines our society’s use and abuse of plastic. The film focuses on plastic as it relates to our society’s throwaway mentality, our culture of convenience, our over consumption of unnecessary, disposable products and packaging—things that we use one time and then, without another thought, throw them away. Where is away? Away is overflowing landfills, clogged rivers, islands of trash in our oceans, and even our very own toxic bodies. Jeb travels the globe on a fact-finding mission—not realizing that after his simple resolution, plastic will never look the same again!
Never Enough by Kelly Anderson
Do we own our things, or do they own us?
Never Enough probes our relationship with the material world through three Americans’ relationships with their “stuff.” Michele Gitlin has 700 sweaters. In touch with the pain as well as the pleasure of over-collecting, she calls Ron Alford, the “Disaster Master,” for help. Ron, a de-cluttering expert who coined the term “disposophobia” and believes that “clutter begins in the head, and ends up on the floor,” determines that Michele is indeed a hoarder. We follow Ron as he visits a retired marine (who owns 7,800 beanie baby dolls), and a Home Shopping Network addict whose purchases have made his apartment unlivable. Never Enough is a meditation on material culture, consumerism, mental illness and the social fabric of our lives.