Changeworx e-News Winter 2016
Welcome to the return of the Changeworx e-news. I’ve missed all of you since our last edition!
Pakistan Comes to London, and Returns to New York
Since it’s World Premiere last April at Tribeca Film Festival, Among the Believers has been touring the world to great reviews – from South Korea to India, Australia to Europe. A Changeworx & Manjusha Films production filmed in Pakistan from 2009-2015, our film charts the personal quest of firebrand Cleric Abdul Aziz Ghazi, whose schools are training thousands of children to take part in jihad (holy war). Also featuring the stories of a boy and a girl who have attended Aziz’s Red Mosque madrassahs, Among the Believers offers rare insights into the ideological battles shaping Pakistan and the Muslim world.
The winner of several festival awards including the CPH:DOX F:ACT Award Jury Prize (pictured right, our packed European Premiere audience), and a recent nominee at the Independent Spirit Awards & Asia Pacific Screen Awards (also pictured), our film’s UK Premiere is Wednesday at Human Rights Watch Film Festival’s London Benefit Night.
Later this week, Among the Believers screens Friday night at 7pm (followed by Q&A) at Frontline Club, with a week-long theatrical run starting the same day at Bertha Dochouse (Q&A after Saturday night’s 7pm screening). Changeworx’s Jonathan Goodman Levitt, the film’s Producer/Writer, will be in London to answer questions along with Producer/Director Hemal Trivedi and Director Mohammed Ali Naqvi. With apologies for the short notice, we hope our London friends will still be able to join us given these multiple options! (Non-UK friends, you can also catch Hemal & Mo on BBC World News’ show “Global” around 3:30pm GMT today!)
For the Q&A event screening on Friday, March 11th at Frontline Club, we are offering a pair of tickets to Changeworx’s friends. Please respond to this newsletter if you’re interested, and we’ll add you to a drawing. (Winner to be informed by email Wednesday night.)
NEW YORKERS: After five sold out screenings at Tribeca last year, Among the Believers returns “home” for another advance screening prior to a wider release (TBD), as the Closing Night of this season’s Stranger than Fiction Series held at IFC Center. Please consider booking your ticket now as it may sell out! For friends in Munich, Geneva, Ljubljana, Kiev, please also check our site for upcoming festival screenings near you later this month too.
Follow the Leader Wins Silver Telly
The U.S. broadcast of Follow the Leader by PBS stations and World Channel has been honored with a Silver Telly Award.
Congratulations to our whole team, and to Carmen Vicencio & everyone at American Documentary, Inc. Our broadcast within the America ReFramed series featured a discussion with the filmmaker and one of our participants, Nick Troiano. For those unaware, Nick was the youngest candidate to run for Congress in the last election cycle (far as we know), and the only Independent who ran in Pennsylvania, where he made a valiant effort to unseat Republican Congressman Tom Marino.
In other Follow the Leader news, it is a pleasure simply to report than none of our main participants are Donald Trump supporters (even if Ben shares his last name – he is not related). To borrow D.J.’s words: “Donald Trump is a dangerous guy who should not be president. Wake up [American] people.” (And register to vote.)
Also Coming Soon: Being Bebe & PS160
A recent recipient of funding from New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), Emily Branham’s Being Bebe began editing last month, after nearly a decade in production. Exploring performance in everyday life, Emily’s film confronts the multiple realities of Cameroonian drag queen – and “RuPaul’s Drag Race” Season 1 champion – BeBe Zahara Benet. It’s been a thrill to watch this surprisingly personal film progress since 2010, and a privilege to be executive producing among such an enthusiastic & talented team.
An Artists Alliance commissioned project, Gabrielle Mertz’s PS160 is an immersive installation that will launch at the Lower East Side’s Clemente Soto Vélez Cultural Center in Fall 2016. A site-specific experience at the intersection of choreography and architecture, Mertz’s exhibition will feature a series of video installations and sound compositions. After a long time away from art installations, it has been an honor & great fun to be creative advisor & consulting producer on Gabrielle’s innovative upcoming project!
Changeworx has also been undergoing some strategic planning, motivated by taking part in Artists Summer Institute; a long overdue public thank you to Creative Capital & Lower Manhattan Cultural Council for such an inspiring week. Along with a new, expanded website later this year thanks to the super-creative & technically brilliant team at Castle Builder Design, we aim to re-launch this newsletter highlighting more news of our partners, friends and clients. Please be in touch if you’re in one of those categories, and have something you’ll want to share.
With gratitude every day for your support – may 2016 bring you, your friends, and family more love, kindness, and thought-provoking work!
Jonathan & your Changeworx team