September 5, 2017
Movies on the Grass film series starts Sept. 10
Submitted by Charlene Brownson
As a free outdoor film series, Movies on the Grass offers the campus and community new films that portray current issues in a relaxed setting. All films start at 8 p.m. or at dusk and will be at Coffman Commons, the grass area in front of Hale Library, with the exception of last film, which will be at Sunset Zoo. In case of rain, films will be viewed in Town Hall at the Leadership Studies Building.
The 2017 schedule:
Sunday, Sept. 10 — "Before the Flood." From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Fisher Stevens and Academy Award-winning actor, environmental activist and U.N. Messenger of Peace Leonardo DiCaprio, "Before the Flood" presents a riveting account of the dramatic changes now occurring around the world due to climate change, as well as the actions we as individuals and as a society can take to prevent the disruption of life on our planet.
"This documentary shows how interconnected the fate of all humanity is but also the power we all possess as individuals to build a better future for our planet," DiCaprio said on the film's website.
Sunday, Sept. 17 — "Don't Tell Anyone" or "No Le Digas a Nadie." "Don't Tell Anyone" tells the story of Angy Rivera who has lived in the United States since she was 4 with a secret that threatens to upend her life: She is undocumented. Now 24 and facing an uncertain future, Rivera becomes an activist for undocumented youth with a popular advice blog and a YouTube channel. She steps out of the shadows a second time to share her story of sexual abuse, an experience all too common among undocumented women. "Don't Tell Anyone" follows Rivera's remarkable journey from poverty in rural Colombia to the front page of The New York Times, according to the film's synopsis.
Sunday, Sept. 24 — "Souls of the Vermilion Sea" at Sunset Zoo. "Souls of the Vermilion Sea" is a feature-length documentary project about the struggle to save the world's most endangered marine mammal, the Vaquita porpoise, according to the film's summary. Less than 100 of these threatened porpoises exist due to illegal poaching. Located off the west coast of the Baja Peninsula in Mexico. Groups like Oceana, Sea Shepard and the Mexican government are trying to save this quickly disappearing species.