Newsreel, the radical filmmakers’ group that captured the energy and imagery of sixties’ activism on film, will screen and discuss their seminal works in a 2-day seminar at Sarah Lawrence College, 202 Heimbold Film Theater, in Bronxville, NY—it opens Friday, November 14th at 8pm.

Newsreel (NR) films of 60’s activism, organizing and civil disobedience were the cinematic embodiment of voices of progressive change and social justice-–the documentaries were committed productions that were revolutionary in spirit and commitment. Interest in Newsreel’s films and the impetus for the seminar came out of the dedicated efforts of a Sarah Lawrence student organizer looking to better understand Newreel’s dynamics and the organizing benefits of political filmmaking in the 60’s and now.

Newsreel‘s story and its seminal productions speak, even today, to the importance of documentary art in building and sustaining movements for radical social change. The seminar features screenings and panel discussions of NR classics, including, “COLUMBIA REVOLT”, the story of the Columbia University student takeover; “OFF THE PIG”, one of the first films made about the Black Panther Party; and “PEOPLE’S WAR”, a reflection on U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

The Sarah Lawrence event opens on November 14th at 8:00pm with remarks on the history of the organization from Newsreel members Norm Fructer and Roz Payne. This will be followed by screenings of three Newsreel films, Strike City, Off the Pig, and The Young Lords. After the screenings, there will be a discussion featuring Dhoruba Bin Wahad (activist and former Black Panther), Mickey Melendez (former member of the Young Lords Party, author of “We Took the Streets”), and Roz Payne (curator of the Newsreel film collection & Black Panther Party Video Library).

On November 15th, during the first half of the day, 10:00am to 1:00pm, seven Newsreel filmmakers will screen their films, which cover a range of social actions, from peace demonstrations, the veterans anti-war movement, the 60’s counter culture, to the Vietnamese anti-colonial movement. In the afternoon, between 2:00pm–5:00pm, the centerpiece of the 2-day event will feature the Newsreel classic, Columbia Revolt (50 min), with a panel discussion to follow, including historians, activists, and the filmmakers.

Two of Newsreel’s feminist films, Up Against the Wall Miss America, the filmed disruption of the 1968 Miss America pageant, and Make Out, a short documentary perspective of a woman’s POV on making-out in a car, will be screened beginning at 5:30, Saturday. Academy Award winner and NR member Deborah Schaffer, who directed Make Out, will lead the discussion.

The lineup for the closing program, 7:30 Saturday, will be Summer ‘68, a film on the organizing efforts around 1968 Democratic Convention in Chicago, and Finally Got The News, which documents activities of the League of Revolutionary Black Workers of Detroit. The filmmakers themselves, along with activists and historians will hold a Q&A following the screenings.

The event is free and open to the public and it’s sponsored by Sarah Lawrence College, the Office ofthe Dean of the College, the Office of Multicultural Affairs and International Students, the Office of Racial/Ethnic Diversity and Campus Engagement, the Women’s History Program and the Global Studies and Visual Arts faculty groups.

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