Empowering film festival right here at Fansawe

The Fanshawe Social Justice Club is kicking off the New Year at Fanshawe with the most ambitious event to date; a week long film festival.

The first annual ‘Empowerment Film Festival' will bring more than 10 hard-hitting, award-winning, thought-provoking and change-inspiring documentary films to Fanshawe College. The goal of this festival is to engage students, faculty, staff and the community at large with issues of social and environmental justice through the powerful medium of film.

Travel to a sweatshop in China and speak to the workers. Meet American soldiers opposed to the war in Iraq. Learn about Haiti from a radical radio host fighting for media democracy there. Unearth the truth about our dependency on oil. Get into the sewer and find out where our waste goes. Visit olive farms, ghettos and hospitals in occupied Palestine. Meet with U.S. presidential candidate Ralph Nader. Start your own organic farm in the city. Get brutalized and arrested by cops at the WTO protest in Seattle. Travel around the world documenting the plight of animals-turned-commodities. Meet farmers being bullied and pushed off their family-farms by agri-business giants like Monsanto.

The Empowerment Film Festival will help you experience this all in just one week by bringing the best independent documentary films to Fanshawe College.

What makes this film festival different is not just the radical focus, but also the presentation. Because of the fact that powerful documentary films can sometimes leave people feeling overwhelmed, these documentaries will be presented by eleven different grass-roots organizations working for social and environmental justice here in London. After the films, there will be short presentations about possible solutions and actions to take, as well as opportunities to connect and get involved with local groups.

Knowledge is power, empower yourself.

Location: Fanshawe College, Room D1052 (D building)
When: Monday, January 14 — Friday, January 18
Time: Starts at 7 p.m. every night
Cost: All films are open to everyone and are therefore presented free of charge. Donations are welcome and appreciated from those who can afford it.

Monday, January 14

7 p.m: CRUDE IMPACT
(1 hr. 37 min)

A powerful and timely exploration of the interconnection between human domination of the planet and the discovery and use of oil.

CRUDE IMPACT exposes our deep-rooted dependency on the availability of fossil fuel energy and examines the dire implications of the pending threat of global peak oil.

Presented by: Post-Carbon London.

Post-Carbon London is exploring and working toward a future in which the local community is no longer dependent on fossil fuels.

9 p.m: CRAPSHOOT
(52 min.)

A hazardous mix of solid and liquid waste is flushed into the sewer every day. With literally billions of gallons of water passing through municipal sewer systems - composed of unknown quantities of chemicals, solvents, heavy metals, human waste, and food - the question becomes: where does it all go? And what effect does that have on us?
Presented by: Fanshawe Green Club.

Tuesday, January 15

7 p.m.: OCCUPATION 101
(85 min.)

A thought-provoking and powerful documentary film on the current and historical root causes of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Unlike any other film ever produced on the conflict -- Occupation 101 presents a comprehensive analysis of the facts and hidden truths surrounding the never ending controversy and dispels many of its long-perceived myths and misconceptions.

The film also details life under Israeli military rule, the role of the United States in the conflict, and the major obstacles that stand in the way of a lasting and viable peace.

Presented by Canadian Friends of Sabeel.

Canadian Friends of Sabeel (CFOS) is a national support network for Sabeel, Ecumenical Center for Liberation Theology in Jerusalem. Sabeel strives to promote a more accurate international awareness regarding the identity, presence, and witness of Palestinian Christians and the wider Palestinian community, as well as their contemporary concerns.

9 p.m: LET THEM STAY
(28 min.)

Let Them Stay features exclusive one-on-one interviews with U.S. war resisters in Canada, documenting their life-changing experiences in Iraq and the hidden realities of U.S. military recruitment and warfare. It also documents the War Resisters Support Campaign, a pan-Canadian coalition of labour, faith and peace groups, Vietnam War resisters and individuals who are working with these war resisters to put pressure on the current federal government to let them stay.

Presented by War Resisters Support Campaign.

The War Resisters Support Campaign is a broad-based coalition of community, faith, labour and other organizations and individuals that have come together to support U.S. soldiers seeking asylum in Canada because they refuse to fight in the illegal war in Iraq.

Wednesday, January 16

7 p.m: THE FUTURE OF FOOD (88 min.)
THE FUTURE OF FOOD offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade. From the prairies of Saskatchewan, Canada to the fields of Oaxaca, Mexico, this film gives a voice to farmers whose lives and livelihoods have been negatively impacted by this new technology.

Presented by The Council of Canadians.

Founded in 1985, the Council of Canadians is Canada's largest citizens' organization, with members and chapters across the country. They work to protect Canadian independence by promoting progressive policies on fair trade, clean water, energy security, public health care, and other issues of social and economic concern to Canadians.

9 p.m: EARTHLINGS
(95 min.)


Narrated by Academy Award Nominee Joaquin Phoenix and featuring music by the critically acclaimed platinum artist Moby, EARTHLINGS is a documentary film about humankind's complete economic dependence on animals raised for pets, food, clothing, entertainment and scientific research. Using hidden cameras and never-before-seen footage, EARTHLINGS chronicles the day-to-day practices of the largest industries in the world, all of which rely entirely on animals for profit.
Presented by: L.O.V.E. (London Organization of Vegetarians for the Environment)

Thursday, January 17

7 p.m: CHINA BLUE
(86 min.)

CHINA BLUE takes viewers inside a blue jeans factory in southern China, where teenage workers struggle to survive harsh working conditions. Providing perspectives from both the top and bottom levels of the factory's hierarchy, the film looks at complex issues of globalization from the human level.

Presented by: Cinema Politica and MEMES.

Cinema Politica London strives to champion alternative media through the art of documentary film. They search for the best documentary art form. To Contact the Cinema Politica London: Email: cinemapolitica@globaluprising.com

9p.m: AN UNREASONABLE MAN: RALPH NADER
(122min)

A look at the career of consumer advocate Ralph Nader from wannabe presidential candidate to public pariah.

Presented by: Global Importune

Global Importune helps to facilitate the release of Amnesty International political prisoners by mobilizing hundreds of volunteers to petition governments to recognize the human rights of political prisoners.

Friday January 18
7 p.m: THE BIRTH OF INDYMEDIA
Presented by: Indymedia London

7:30 p.m: THIS IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE
(72 min.)

This film, shot by 100 amateur camera operators, tells the story of the enormous street protests in Seattle, Washington in November 1999, against the World Trade Organization summit being held there.

Presented by Indymedia London

8:45 p.m: THE EASIEST TARGETS
Presented by Indymedia London

9:15 p.m: THE AGRONOMIST
(90 min)
A profile of Haitian radio journalist and human rights activist, Jean Dominique. It includes: historical footage of Haiti's vivid and tumultuous past; interviews with Dominique, himself and with Michele Montas--his heroic wife, life-long love, and extraordinary partner.

Presented by London Alternative Media Coalition