RIFF & Berry College 2023
Our 2023 Documentary Series: Through a Different Lens
Butterfly In The Sky. February 8, 2024. 7 pm. The Historic DeSoto Theatre
Butterfly In the Sky tells the story of the beloved PBS children’s series "Reading Rainbow," its iconic host LeVar Burton, and the challenges its creators faced in cultivating a love of reading through television. Two seconds into the bubbling synth sounds of its theme song will have a child of the 1980s or ‘90s exclaiming “Reading Rainbow!” Such is the beloved nature of the classic children’s literary television show that introduced millions of kids to the wonder of books.
Not only did the series insist on having kids speak to kids about their favorite stories,Reading Rainbow introduced the world to one of the most adored television hosts of all time, LeVar Burton. Thanks to his direct, non-patronizing and, most importantly, kind delivery, Burton became a conduit to learning for children of every background - delving behind the pages to the people, places, and things each new story explored.
Black Barbie: A Documentary. January 18. 7 pm. Berry College’s Intracultural Center, in Krannert.
Love her or hate her, almost everyone has a Barbie story. Even if they don’t have a story, there’s a story as to why they don’t have a story. In this film, we tell the story behind the first Black Barbie, because yes, she has a story too. It started with the filmmaker’s 83-year old aunt, Beulah Mae Mitchell, and the seemingly simple question, “Why not make a Barbie that looks like me?”
The ONLY Doctor. October 12 at 6:00 pm. Georgia Highlands College - Heritage Hall
This contemporary story of rural healthcare in the United States highlights Dr. Karen Kinsell, for nearly 20 years, the only doctor in Southwest Georgia’s Clay County.
The film begins when Dr. Kinsell comes to the realization that she can no longer afford to be the one-and-only volunteer doctor in rural Clay County, Georgia. But ever committed to her community, she looks to forge a partnership with a medical university in order to keep her clinic open. After several options, a possibility emerges and so does disappointment. Then the pandemic creates new challenges, but also opportunities and new decisions.
We Will Speak. April 11, 2023. 7 pm. Rome City Auditorium
The Cherokee language is deeply tied to Cherokee identity; yet generations of assimilation efforts by the U.S. government and anti-Indigenous stigmas have forced the Tri-Council of Cherokee tribes to declare a State of Emergency for the language in 2019. While there are 430,000 Cherokee citizens in the three federally recognized tribes, fewer than an estimated 1,500 fluent speakers remain—the majority of whom are elderly. The covid pandemic has unfortunately hastened the course. Language activists, artists, and the youth must now lead the charge of urgent radical revitalization efforts to help save the language from the brink of extinction.
This feature-length documentary was shot on-location in Oklahoma and North Carolina throughout 2019-2022; through intimate interviews, vérité footage of community gatherings, and extensive archival materials, the film explores the nuanced ways the Cherokee language is vital to maintaining a unique cultural identity and relationship with the world.
Life After Prison: Bridge Builders Short Films. March 7. 7 pm. 7 Hills Event Space
It can be extremely difficult to successfully reenter a community after incarceration. Together we will watch short films showing how people around the United States are working to assist persons who were formerly incarcerated, and then discuss the topic, led by Dr. Sarah Allred, Associate Professor of Sociology at Berry College. Filmmaker Travis Wood will also be present, along with other community leaders.
The RIFF & Berry College Through a Different Lens documentary series contains films that are part of the Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers, a program of South Arts. Additional thanks to the Corella & Bertram F. Bonner Foundation.
The screenings of Black Barbie, The Only Doctor, Elephant 6 Recording Co., Butterfly In The Sky, We Will Speak and the Bridge Builders were supported in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts via South Arts.
