Pre-registration is full but there will be additional tickets at the door until they run out.
Wednesday, January 30th, 7:30pm
Co-presented by Veterans for Peace, NYC Chapter 34 and About Face: Veterans Against The War
Sonia Kennebeck, 2016, 92 min
National Bird follows the dramatic journey of three whistleblowers who are determined to break the silence around one of the most controversial current affairs issues of our time: the secret U.S. drone war. At the center of the film are three U.S. military veterans. Plagued by guilt over participating in the killing of faceless people in foreign countries, they decide to speak out publicly, despite the possible consequences.
Their stories take dramatic turns, leading one of the protagonists to Afghanistan where she learns about a horrendous incident. But her journey also gives hope for peace and redemption. National Bird gives rare insight into the U.S. drone program through the eyes of veterans and survivors, connecting their stories as never seen before in a documentary. Its images haunt the audience and bring a faraway issue close to home. Executive produced by Wim Wenders and Errol Morris.
Q&A with director Sonia Kennebeck, Ashton DeFusco, United States Marine Corps conscientious objector, and Madiha Tahir, filmmaker/journalist and PhD candidate at Columbia University, focusing on autonomous warfare, to follow screening.
This program is part of:
Films by Firelight: A Documentary Film Series In Harlem
(Oct 2018-June 2019)
Films by Firelight was created by Firelight Media to introduce our Harlem community to a diverse range of documentary films that have been directed and produced by the talented filmmakers we work with as part of our flagship program, the Documentary Lab.
We created the DocLab in 2008 to offer artist support to talented first-time filmmakers from underrepresented backgrounds. The program extends the work of our co-founder and master documentarian, Stanley Nelson. Our goal is to ensure that the next generation of non-fiction filmmakers representing diverse identities can flourish.
Films by Firelight takes place in Harlem’s beloved large and small film exhibition venues throughout the community. This series focuses on the rich and singular canon of non-fiction film generated from the Documentary Lab along with some classic films, and newer work from Stanley Nelson’s vault. Films are accompanied by lively and frank discussions with the filmmakers, subjects, stakeholders and artists. Films by Firelight is programmed by Jessica Green.
