Community Cinema Vashon presents "Two Spirits"

June 5th, 3-5 PM at Ober Park performance space



Two Spirits interweaves the tragic story of a mother’s loss of her son with a revealing look at the largely unknown history of a time when the world wasn’t simply divided into male and female and many Native American cultures held places of honor for people of integrated genders. Powerful and moving, Lydia Nibley’s Two Spirits explores the life and death of Fred Martinez and the ancient Native American two-spirit tradition.

Fred Martinez told his mother he felt as if he was both a boy and a girl, and she explained that this is a special gift, according to traditional Navajo culture. But the place where two discriminations meet is a dangerous place to live, and Fred became one of the youngest hate-crime victims in modern history when he was brutally murdered at sixteen. Between tradition and controversy, and freedom and fear, lies the truth—the bravest choice you can make is to be yourself.



Two Spirits explores issues of national concern including the bullying and violence commonly faced by LGBT people, and the epidemic of LGBT teen suicide, and reveals the range of gender expression that has long been seen as a healthy part of many of the indigenous cultures of North America, and of Navajo culture in particular.

The Navajo believe that to maintain harmony, there must be a balanced interrelationship between the feminine and the masculine within the individual, in families, in the culture, and in the natural world. For the first time on film, Two Spirits tells stories from the Navajo tradition of four genders. The first gender is the feminine woman. The second is the masculine man. The third is the male-bodied person who has a feminine essence—nadleehi. The fourth is the female-bodied person who has a masculine essence—dilbaa.




In Navajo, nadleehi means “one who is transformed," and as the film traces the ramifications of Fred’s murder, it also shows the transformation being undertaken by Native activists who are working to restore the rich heritage of two-spirit people and to claim their place within their tribal communities.



“The film team is working with over sixty organizations nationwide to have six million people see the film and to help expand the national conversation about gender,” says the director of Two Spirits, Lydia Nibley.

Lois Vossen the producer and founder of Independent Lens explains, “Two Spirits is an important film that tells a modern story with deep historical roots and does so in a way that is surprising and striking. It’s a film that shows humankind at both our best and worst. It’s gut-wrenching at times, but also hopeful and very engaging.”

To learn more about the film, and the issues involved, visit the companion website for Two Spirits at www.pbs.org/independentlens/two-spirits. Get detailed information on the film, watch preview clips, read an interview with the filmmaker, and explore the subject in depth with links and resources. The site also features a Talkback section where viewers can share their ideas and opinions.

Community Cinema Vashon presents "Welcome to Shelbyville"

Sunday, 5/22 from 3-5p at the Ober Park Performance Room, free of charge



The second in a program of Community Cinema Vashon's free monthly screenings and moderated discussions of documentaries from the Emmy Award winning PBS film series Independent Lens is brought to you courtesy of We All Belong, a project of Welcome Vashon.



Set in the heart of America's Bible Belt,
"Welcome To Shelbyville" focuses on a small Southern town as they grapple with rapid demographic change and issues of immigrant integration.



The film captures the complexity of the African American, Latino, white, and Somali subjects as their lives intertwine against the backdrop of a crumbling economy and the election of a new president. In a year of historic change, one town in the Heartland questions what it means to be American.



For further information, contact Jane Berg - jane.e.berg@gmail.com or 206-567-4532




Mark your calendars for June 5th and join in the Vashon Premiere of "Two Spirits", at the Ober Park Performance Room from 3pm-5pm.



Future dates of the free summer film and discussion series are July 24, August 14, and September 11 at the Ober Park Performance Room, 3pm-5pm.


www.communitycinema.org

Transition Vashon presents: The Power of Community

Saturday, May 14, 2011 - program begins at 6:00 pm

At Vashon Lutheran Church, 18623 Vashon Hwy. - just south of town

Free (with donations welcome to defray expenses)

The Power of Community: How Cuba survived Peak Oil

directed by Faith Morgan, and released 2006

~ fifth in the series FILMS FOR TRANSITION 2011

"The Power of Community" is a dynamic documentary about the experience of the Cuban people in early 1990's, the "Special Period" after the breakup of the Soviet Union and the sudden decline of petroleum imports to Cuba. The nation lost over half of its oil imports, and 85 percent of its international trade economy. Their food production, food distribution, transportation, health care, housing construction, factories, and other sectors all had to be re-invented. Cuba survived by allocating land to the people to grow most of their food locally, engineering alternative construction methods, and shifting to more sustainable energy sources - such as powering household radios with tiny solar panels. The interviews and archival newsreels in this film demonstrate the grassroots ingenuity and local innovations that were critical to helping the people survive. The shift in the country's economic mindset, from international consumption to local sustainability, was implemented in both urban and rural neighborhoods with organic gardens and modes of transport.

The originator of the Transition Town movement, Rob Hopkins, has commented, "Peak Oil could be the opportunity for a huge renaissance for local agriculture, for community, for sustainable manufacturing, and for biodiversity." The Power of Community documentary about the Cuban experience over a period of seven years is a case study in what it can take for a nation to co-create such a rebirth for our families and towns.

We believe that Vashon will be able to bring forth such a rebirth. It will require that we apply ourselves to learn the basic lessons ~ about re-skilling, sharing good ideas, simplifying and re-tooling in many ways, and moving forward together. Let's build a resilient power of community on Vashon!

Please tell one friend about the movie. We hope to see you on May 14.

"Waiting for Superman" Thursday, April 28

7:00pm - 9:00pm
Ober Park

Every morning, in big cities, suburbs and small towns across America, parents send their children off to school with the highest of hopes. But a shocking number of students in the United States attend schools where they have virtually no chance of learning---failure factories likelier to produce drop-outs than college graduates. Despite decades of well-intended reforms and huge sums of money, over-all, our schools haven’t improved markedly since the 1970s. Why? There is an answer. And it’s not what you think.





“Waiting for Superman” is a film made for and about kids who are struggling to get a great education and their parents who are doing everything they can to ensure that they get it.





Even on our piece of Paradise, Vashon’s public and private schools, need help. Money, equipment and class room volunteers are in short supply.





The League of Women Voters, Vashon Unit, is sponsoring a free viewing of this highly acclaimed film on Thursday, April 28 in the Ober Park Performance Room. Doors open at 7 PM; the film starts at 7:15 PM. There will be an optional discussion following the 111 minute film. If you missed this fascinating documentary last time, don’t miss it again---this time it’s free!


For questions or more information, contact Ellen Kritzman at 567-4837."

An interesting article I came across recently that made a lasting impression,
It Takes a Whole Village to Raise a Child.

Are we as a community ready to step up to that challenge? - bth

Vashon Community Cinema presents: For Once in My Life

Saturday, April 30th, 1:30 PM at Vashon Theatre

An informal Celebratory Reception will follow across the street at the Presbyterian Church. This is going to be a day to honor Vashon residents, active in our community, who are living with disability issues.

For questions or more information, contact Jane Berg at 206-567-4532



"Jim Bigham's Inspiring For Once In My Life"

via PBS

Film Showcases a Unique Band of Singers and Musicians, and their Journey to Show the World the Greatness—and Killer Soundtrack—Within Each of Them

For Once In My Life is an infectious, expectation-defying look at the inspiring Spirit of Goodwill band, a unique assembly of singers and musicians, all with a wide range of mental and physical challenges, who share an uncanny gift for music, joy, and friendship. The film follows the band, made up of participants at the Goodwill Industries center of South Florida, as their determination, talent, and dedication takes them from the rehearsal room to the concert stage.



The 29 talented members of the Miami-based Spirit of Goodwill Band are all living with varying degrees of physical and mental challenges, but you’d never know it by listening to them. The pianist, Christian, is blind and autistic; lead singer Terry never fully recovered from being dropped by his father when he was 14 months old; and drummer Sam’s development was stunted by his mother's efforts to hide her pregnancy. With the enthusiastic encouragement of Dennis Pastrana, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries South Florida, the rehabilitation team, and their dedicated music director, the members of the Goodwill Band have grown from one piano into an orchestra with voice, percussion, keyboards, and a brass section. They work tirelessly and their musical success has transformed and enriched all aspects of their lives.



Goodwill in Miami graciously opened their doors and allowed the filmmakers to follow the band as they progress from concerts at veterans hospitals to larger public performances, and we get to know the members, meet their families, and visit their homes. They are “discovered” by Miami Mayor Manny Diaz and music impresario Emilio Estefan, and the band is invited to play the concert of a lifetime — the U.S. Mayor’s Convention being held that year in Miami.

It’s a dream gig for the Spirit of Goodwill, with an audience of over 1000 people, made up of mayors from 440 American cities, their families, and special guests. The film follows the band as they prepare for this great honor, an arduous process that becomes a test of patience, compassion, and faith. The film concludes with a performance that leaves the audience cheering. For Once in My Life won the Audience Awards at the South by Southwest, Nashville, Sarasota and Heartland Film Festivals, the Jury Award at the Sonoma and Port Townsend Film Festivals and the Music Impact Award at the Nashville Film Festivals. Filled with joy, humor and tough love, it is an eye-opening look at the tremendous potential of people with disabilities and the power of music to transform lives.



To learn more about the film, visit the For Once In My Life interactive companion website (pbs.org/for-once-in-my-life), which features detailed information on the film, including an interview with the filmmaker and links and resources pertaining to the film’s subject matter.