“Hollywood Speaks Out” Film Festival at BIG ARTS on Sanibel

Nov. 18, 2010 - PRLog -- BIG ARTS Film Society will present the Hollywood Speaks Out film series, based on Dr. Robert Hilliard's recent book, Hollywood Speaks Out: Pictures That Dared to Protest Real World Issues. Introduction and discussion of each film will be led by Hilliard.
           
Hilliard has worked in various media, taught at a number of universities, and was the Chief of Public Broadcasting at the Federal Communications Commission and Chair of the Federal Interagency Media Committee. He has published more than 35 books. Hollywood Speaks Out explores the rare Hollywood films that tackled red-hot, social issues while society was still experiencing them. Autographed copies of Hollywood Speaks Out will be available for purchase at each film.  
           
The series begins at 1 p.m. Wednesday, December 1, with Charlie Chaplin’s Modern Times, a hilarious satire on the role of technology in modern life, mass production, and the treatment of workers. Chaplin's rage against the machine remains fresh for the 21st century. Modern Times includes some of Chaplin’s greatest comedy routines and in it, “Charlie Speaks,” for the first time on film—that sequence is a tour de force in itself.      
           
9 to 5 will be screened Wednesday, December 8, at 1 p.m. By 1980 the women's movement drew patronage not just from political activists, and also from millions of working women. 9 to 5 was the perfect populist vehicle for their cries of frustration. Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton portray three female employees of a “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot” who find a way to turn the tables on him.
           
Media madness reigns supreme in screenwriter Paddy Chayefsky's scathing and prophetic Network. This brilliant criticism of the hollow, lurid wasteland of television journalism is every bit as potent now as it was when the film was released. The film, starring Faye Dunaway and William Holden, is a cautionary tale of the news media as infotainment. Network will be screened Wednesday, December 15, at 1 p.m.
       
Films will be shown with surround sound in high definition using a high-quality screen and projector in Schein Performance Hall. A sound-enhancement system for the hearing impaired is available. All films subject to change. Admission is $5.
           
For the complete listing of BIG ARTS films, to purchase tickets, to sign up for workshops, or to become a member, stop by BIG ARTS, 900 Dunlop Road Sanibel, call (239) 395-0900, e-mail info@BIGARTS.org, or log on to www.BIGARTS.org.

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Whether your interest is in classical, jazz, or popular music; dance; the visual arts; lectures; film or live theater; or in attending a class or workshop – BIG ARTS has something for everyone!