Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers returns to the Shoals
SHEFFIELD-In 2018, life is a complex mosaic of issues, events and stories both broad and personal. More than ever, the arts offer a window into these issues and can be a tool to pierce past the surface to examine the human condition itself.
In this spirit, the Tennessee Valley Art Association is proud to partner with South Arts to screen six films from the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers, each exploring a different topic. Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students and TVAA members. Season tickets are $30.
Prior to each screening, filmmakers will give insight into their artistic process, enlightening audiences on the craft of filmmaking and how creative and artistic talents are adapted to the big screen. Following each film, the filmmaker will be available to answer questions about filmmaking as well as the topic of each film.
“We are passionate about connecting filmmakers with communities,” said Teresa Hollingsworth, program director with South Arts. “Film and media artists are at the forefront of countless important conversations. Their ability to develop thematically resonant work and tell stories opens audiences’ eyes and ears to new concepts and ideas.”
Katie Owens-Murphy is an assistant professor of English at the University of North Alabama who represented the Ritz Theatre with the film selection process in Atlanta. She said this year’s season is comprised of many different points of view.
“Many of these films carefully balance multiple perspectives, as “hillbilly” is constructed from interviews with rural folks, urban folks, white and black folks, conservatives, and progressives to show how stereotypes about Appalachia flatten categories that are quite complicated,” Owens-Murphy said. “‘The Blood is at the Doorstep’ follows the perspective of a grieving family in the wake of a police shooting, contrasting the family’s point of view to that of local law enforcement and news media.”
“Quiet Heroes” tells the story of two Catholic nuns in Salt Lake City in the ’80s as they care for patients with a new and misunderstood disease: AIDS, bringing perspectives of the local Mormon, Catholic and LGBT communities.
Not all the films are heavy, though. “Road to Race Day” follows NASCAR rookie Chase Elliott as he begins his career as a race car driver and “Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury” tells the story of a Southern rock band from Georgia that defied their genre and Christian record label and then saw three of the band members become Greek Orthodox priests.
The final film of the series “The Pushouts” takes a look at educational systems from the perspective of a high school dropout turned gang member turned felon turned tenured college professor Victor Rios who now works to break down the school-to-prison pipeline.
Owens-Murphy added that she is especially proud of the diversity of subjects and artistic styles, each film tackling a new subject and no two films are crafted in the same way, providing a wide range of filmmaking styles to explore.
“I do encourage folks to view the entire series in order to appreciate the balance we’ve achieved in this year’s selections,” she said. “The films are as informative as they are moving, and they will generate some really interesting conversations. There really should be something for everybody.”
This program has been made possible by grants from the Alabama State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Ritz Cinema Society / Southern Circuit 2018-19 schedule
- “hillbilly” — Sept. 21 with filmmaker Samantha Cole
In “hillbilly,” directors Sally Rubin and Ashley York show the evolution of the hillbilly stereotype as uneducated and promiscuous in film and television, linking it with corporate exploitation of Appalachia’s natural resources. The film seeks to illuminate and expand cultural understanding of the region, ultimately creating dialogue between urban and rural America.
- “Road to Race Day” — Oct. 19 with filmmaker Cynthia Hill
“With Road to Race Day,” Producer/Director Cynthia Hill digs deep into stock-car racing’s marrow with unprecedented access to NASCAR’s most-winning team, Hendrick Motorsports. Race Day’s unique viewpoint and cinema-verite style offers a window into the strategies and preparations that propel these premium athletes toward the next race and ultimate success.
- “Quiet Heroes” — Nov. 9 with filmmaker Kristen Ries and Maggie Snyder
In Salt Lake City, Utah, the religious monoculture severely complicated the AIDS crisis, where patients received no support from—or were cast into exile by—the political, religious, and medical communities. “Quiet Heroes” tells the story of Dr. Kristen Ries, Maggie Snyder and their ambitious plan to care for patients with HIV/AIDS in Utah.
- “The Blood is at the Doorstep” — Feb. 15 with filmmaker Erik Ljung
After Dontre Hamilton, a black, unarmed man diagnosed with schizophrenia, was shot 14 times and killed by police in Milwaukee, his family embarks on a quest for answers, justice, and reform as the investigation unfolds. Filmed over the course of three years in the direct aftermath of Dontre’s death, this intimate vérité documentary follows his family as they channel their grief into community organizing in an attempt to reset the narrative.
- “Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury” — March 22 with filmmaker Matt Hinton
“Parallel Love: The Story of a Band Called Luxury” follows the path of Luxury, a band from small-town Georgia, who, on the cusp of success, suffer a devastating touring wreck with long-term consequences. In the intervening years, they continue to make records and three members of the band become Eastern Orthodox priests. Through interviews and archival footage, Parallel Love tells the gripping and poignant story of Luxury and documents the making of a new record, now as priests.
- “The Pushouts” — April 26 with filmmaker Katie Galloway & Dawn Valadez
“I was in prison before I was even born.” So begins the story of Victor Rios a high school dropout, gang member and three-time felon by 15. When a teacher’s quiet persistence, a mentor’s moral conviction, and his best friend’s murder converge, Rios’ path takes an unlikely turn. Two decades later Rios is a 36-year-old tenured UC professor, author and national thought leader on the school to prison pipeline. Woven with archival material over 25 years, The Pushouts examines crucial questions of race, class, power, and the American dream at a particularly urgent time.
Media Release/Bobby Bozeman, Marketing and program development/Tennessee Valley Art Association
