A searing documentary using the deeply personal, never-before-heard testimonies to tell the story of the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting is featured during March’s Indie Lens Pop-Up community film series in Lincoln.
“Newtown” starts at 1:30 p.m. March 19, at the Sheldon Museum of Art, 12th and R streets.
The December 2012 shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, is the deadliest mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history. Through interviews with parents, siblings, teachers, doctors and first responders, “Newtown” documents a traumatized community still reeling from the senseless killing, fractured by grief but driven toward a sense of purpose.
A discussion following the film will be facilitated by Melody Vaccaro, an advocate with Nebraskans Against Gun Violence.
Presented by NET, the Independent Lens documentary film screening combined with speakers and open discussion, confronts real-life issues while bringing people together for community-driven conversation around films from the award-winning PBS series.
In partnership with NET, film screenings will also be available in March at the Midwest Theater in Scottsbluff and the West Point Community Theatre in West Point.
Future film screenings and discussions in Lincoln will be at the Sheldon Museum of Art. The film series remaining lineup includes:
“National Bird” - 7:30 p.m. April 3 – Follow whistleblowers who, despite possible consequences, are determined to break the silence around one of the most controversial issues of our time: the secret U.S. drone war. The film gives rare insight through the eyes of both survivors and veterans who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder while plagued by guilt over participating in the killing of faceless people in foreign countries.
“Real Boy”- 1:30 p.m. May 21 – This coming-of-age story features Bennett, a transgender teenager with dreams of musical stardom. During the first two years of his gender transition, Bennett works to repair a strained relationship with his family, and he is taken under the wing of his friend and musical hero, celebrated transgender folk singer Joe Stevens.
Indie-Lens Pop-Up film and discussion series is free and open to the public. Films are shown in partnership with ITVS and Lincoln community radio station KZUM (89.3 FM) and focus on thought-provoking and controversial topics.
For more information on the series and NET Community Engagement, click here.
For more information about Independent Lens, click here.
