Friday, March 09, 2018
The City Club Announces the 2018 FilmForums at #CIFF42
#CIFF42 is nearly upon us, and the City Club is once again partnering with the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) to present 10 FilmForums – a film screening followed by a panel discussion – between April 5 and April 14. Find trailers and descriptions for our featured films below. Mark your favorites – tickets go on sale March 23!
Thursday, April 5 at 4:15 p.m. THE S WORD
It seems we often only hear about suicide after the deed has been completed. But what about those who attempt it and survive? What becomes of them? In the film, a variety of people talk about their experiences with depression and what led them to want to end it all. You may think a movie about suicide would be all doom and gloom – it’s not. THE S WORDis also full of humor and hope. It’s about finding silver linings and helping others to see that no matter how hard it gets, death is not the solution.
Watch the trailer here.
Friday, April 6 at 4 p.m. BREWMASTER
If you are a fan ofallofbeer’smagnificentqualities– the tastes, the aromas, the way it trickles down your throat on a hot summer day – then BREWMASTER is your chance to meet some of the men and women who have made the production of beer the sudsy center of their lives. From home brewers who use their stoves to some of the biggest names in the business, this documentary is a behind-the-scenes look at how some of our favorite beers began.
Watch a clip here.
Saturday, April 7 at 1:30 p.m. ZERO WEEKS
Although New York and Washington, D.C. recently passed statewide paid family leave programs, they're outliers because the U.S. has no federal paid leave policy. In fact, in 2016 only 14 percent of American private sector workers had access to paid family leave via their jobs. The sobering documentary ZERO WEEKS addresses this disparity from a variety of perspectives, all of which bolster the case for stronger legislation. Interviews with advocates, economists, lawmakers, and academics – coupled with personal stories - explain this complex topic in straightforward, informative ways.
Watch the trailer here.
Sunday, April 8 at 11:10 a.m. FAIL STATE
Executive produced by news icon Dan Rather, FAIL STATE examines the rise of for-profit colleges in America and how politicians and shady businessmen tarnished our higher education system. It also looks at the mountain of student debt that makes it hard for graduates to succeed in their post-college lives. Interviews with former students from predatory institutions such as DeVry, Westwood College, Kaplan, and the now-defunct ITTdiscusstheirfarfrom stellar experiences. The documentary provides a timeline of government involvement in higher education, dating back to the 1970s. A series of misguided – or more appropriately, unscrupulous – regulations and legislation play a huge role in where we’ve ended up. If we want to secure a future for the next generation, we must change the way our colleges are run. This realization is at the forefront of FAIL STATE. Consider it your crash course on the college-cost calamity.
Watch a Q & A with Dan Rather here.
Monday, April 9 at 6:10 p.m. FREEDOM FOR THE WOLF
What do freedom and democracy look like in the 21st century, and why are people fighting for it? Exploring these two pressing questions—and examining the moral and physical conflicts that arise as a result—is the aim of this smart documentary. To find answers, FREEDOM FOR THE WOLF specifically focuses on places with "illiberal democracies," or regimes where elected leaders ignore the will of the people and use their power to erode human rights or suppress marginalized groups. With its mix of political perspectives and voices, as well as commentary from experts, FREEDOM FOR THE WOLF aims to provide insights and solutions. The conclusions end up a thorough (if somber) look at the complicated manifestations of freedom.
Watch the trailer here.
Tuesday, April 10 at 7:10 p.m. INTELLIGENT LIVES
How much weight does an IQ score actually hold? Considering all the different types of intelligence, can a simplistic number truly tell us what someone is capable of? Director Dan Habib, whose career has centered on films about the disabled, certainly doesn't think so. Chances are, after seeing his latest documentary, neither will you. Narrated by award-winning actor Chris Cooper, INTELLIGENT LIVES dismantles the myths about people with intellectual disabilities.
Watch the preview here.
Wednesday, April 11 at 4:15 p.m. ACORN AND THE FIRESTORM
When the Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now (ACORN) was mentioned during the 2008 Presidential debates, it should have been a boon to the group who had spent decades fighting for impoverished communities. As with all social justice groups, growth in the public view makes you a target of the elite, and ACORN began to come under Republicanirefor the crime of getting black people registered to vote. ACORN AND THE FIRESTORM provides a behind-the-scenes look at how one of the country’s leading community organizations fell from grace at the hands of two white, right-wing con artists with slick editing skills.
Watch the trailer here.
Thursday, April 12 at 6:40 p.m. THIS IS HOME
Since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, more than five million people have been forced to flee their homeland. Of these refugees, just under 21,000 have been accepted into the United States–often after years of being waitlisted. Upon arrival, refugees are provided with interpreters, home and job placement, and assistance applying for financial aid programs. However, they only have eight months before they are required to be entirely self-sufficient. THIS IS HOME follows four Syrian families on this eight-month journey as they adapt to life in the United States.
Watch the trailer here.
Friday, April 13 at 5:30 p.m. DARK MONEY
Montana has a long history of fighting to keep greed out of its politics. Back in 1912, they passed a law banning corporate money in elections in an effort to thwart the wealthy copper kings, whose mining interests controlled both government and media. That kind of corruption now plagues the entire country, especially since the Supreme Court's 2010 Citizens United ruling. This shady currency is referred to as dark money, which is also the title of this impassioned documentary, DARK MONEY profiles a number of Montana politicians and journalists who are once again battling to maintain a fair democracy in their state.
Watch the trailer here.
Saturday, April 14 at 1:20 p.m. DAWNLAND
It's no secret that the U.S. government's track record with Native Americans has never been stellar. But you may be unaware of the horrors documented in DAWNLAND. For much of the 20thcentury, social workers stole Native children from their homes and placed them with white families. The reasons for their removal were often unfounded; some were the result of cultural differences that non-Natives didn't understand. More troubling is this practice seemed to be part of a systematic move to distance the children from their heritage and erase their culture. DAWNLAND focuses on Maine's recent formation of a Truth and Reconciliation Committee that aims to help those affected by this atrocity.
Watch the trailer here.
