Sundance Institute Film Forward: Advancing Cultural Dialogue Travels to Harrisburg, Lancaster, Centre Country and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania April 9-

Sundance Institute Film Forward: Advancing Cultural Dialogue Travels to Harrisburg, Lancaster, Centre Country and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania April 9-13 Sundance Institute and the State Library of Pennsylvania CollaborateTo Host Film Screenings and Discussions in 22 libraries and venues across the State

Filmmaker Kim Mordaunt (The Rocket) and Producer Christine O'Malley (If You Build It) Travel with the Program

Case study on the Intersection of Film and Music with Peter Golub, Sundance Institute Film Music Program Director and Producer Christine O'Malley, If You Build It in Philadelphia at the International House

Posted Mar 19, 2014

Park City, UT Sundance Institute and the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities announced today that Film Forward: Advancing Cultural Dialogue will host free screenings of eight films with moderated discussions, panels and artist roundtables in Harrisburg, Lancaster, Centre County and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. For a full schedule of events in Pennsylvania visit sundance.org/filmforward. To view content from past trips visit sundance.org/video/playlists/film-forward/. Over the past three years Film Forward has reached more than 46,000 people in more than 11 countries and 12 US cities.

Film Forward, a partnership of Sundance Institute and four U.S. federal cultural agencies, is a touring program that offers film screenings, workshops and discussions designed to foster dialogue and cross-cultural understanding. It uses the power of cinema to promote broader cultural understanding, inspire curiosity and enhance awareness of shared stories and values across generations, religion, ethnicity and borders. The partnering federal agencies are the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities and The Institute of Museum and Library Services. The 2014 season of Film Forward will reach over 10,000 people through international (Mexico, Taiwan, China, Bosnia & Herzegovina and Indonesia) and domestic locations (California, Michigan, Mississippi and Pennsylvania).

Common themes explored in the films include acceptance, overcoming adversity and the transformative power of art. In each location, Film Forward seeks audiences that have limited access to independent film, students and the local filmmaking community. The program in Pennsylvania will focus on communities in transition and the empowerment of community engagement. The program will host workshops featuring both filmmakers.

Storytelling through film illuminates different ways of thinking and brings about understanding of new cultures, said Keri Putnam, Executive Director of Sundance Institute. We look forward to showing these films in libraries, schools and film centers in Pennsylvania, which will inspire a dynamic exchange of ideas among the filmmakers and attendees.

Libraries strengthen communities by bringing people together to a safe place where they can connect, exchange ideas, and explore new worlds. They are a perfect venue for the thought-provoking films presented through Film Forward, said Susan H. Hildreth, Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services. We applaud the State Library of Pennsylvania for connecting 22 public libraries with Film Forward and encouraging a statewide dialogue on cultural understanding.

The Rocket is a deeply personal story about the determination of a boy who has the odds stacked against him, said filmmaker Kim Mourdaunt. No matter where the film is shown, audiences around the world can relate to the boy's struggles and hopefully find some inspiration in his perseverance. I am excited to engage audiences in Pennsylvania and to hear different reactions to the film and how their stories might have parallels to Ahlo and his family.

Sundance Institute staff members traveling with the program are: Film Forward Director Meredith Lavitt, Sundance Institute Film Music Program Director Peter Golub and Film Forward Manager Bethany Clarke.

Dates, specific venues, partners and schedules for each location will be announced at www.sundance.org/filmforward.

FILM FORWARD Year Four Films:

Circles (Directed by: Srdan Golubovic )

Five people are affected by a tragic heroic act. Twenty years later, all of them will have to confront the past through their own crises. Will they overcome the guilt, frustration, and the urge for revenge? Will they do the right thing, at all costs?

International Narrative

Dancing in Jaffa (Directed by: Hilla Medalia)

Renowned ballroom dancer, Pierre Dulaine, takes his belief that dance can overcome political and cultural differences and applies it to 11 year old Jewish and Palestinian Israelis. What occurs is magical and transformative.

International Documentary

Fruitvale Station (Directed by: Ryan Coogler)

The true story of Oscar, a 22-year-old Bay Area resident who crosses paths with friends, enemies, family, and strangers on the last day of 2008.

US Narrative

If You Build It (Directed by: Patrick Creadon)

If You Build It spends a year in the life of one of America's most innovative classrooms. Designer/activists Emily Pilloton and Matt Miller, together with their high school students, unleash the power of humanitarian design to help their struggling community in rural North Carolina.

US Documentary

The Rocket (Directed by: Kim Mordaunt)

A boy who is believed to bring bad luck leads his family and a couple of ragged misfits through Laos to find a new home. After a calamity filled journey through a land scarred by war, the boy sets off to prove he's not cursed and builds a giant rocket to enter the most lucrative but dangerous competition of the year: the Rocket Festival.

International Narrative

The World Before Her (Directed by: Nisha Pahuja)

Moving between two extremes the in

LINK:	http://www.sundance.org/press-center/release/film-forward-travels-to-p...
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