Johnson State, Vermont Public Television Bring Community Cinema to Lamoille County

September 25, 2013

Vermont Public Television is partnering with Johnson State College to bring the network’s popular Community Cinema program to Lamoille County.

Launched in 2009, VPT’s Community Cinema presents free, monthly screenings of the award-winning PBS documentary series Independent Lens, followed by panel discussions with audience members.

The JSC-VPT partnership will bring six films and discussions about timely social issues to Johnson State College this academic year, starting with The Graduates/Los Graduados: Women’s Stories at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1. This film examines pressing issues in education through the eyes of Latina adolescents in the U.S.

All Community Cinema films and discussions at Johnson will take place in the Stearns Cinema, located on the first (lower) floor of the Stearns Student Center on the JSC campus, at 7 p.m. on Tuesdays. Other Community Cinema events this year will be:

• The State of Arizona, focusing on the battle over illegal immigration in that state: Dec. 3, 2013.

• Las Marthas, focusing on the year-long preparation of Mexican-American teens in Texas for an exclusive pageant and ball that raises questions about tradition, identity and the role of women along the border: Feb. 4, 2014.

• The Trials of Muhammad Ali, about Ali’s conversion to Islam and the related issues of race, faith and identity that remain today, March 18, 2014.

• Medora, focusing on a once-booming rural community and its residents struggling to rebound: April 15, 2014.

• The New Black, an examination of homophobia in the black church and efforts by conservative Christians to advance their anti-gay political agenda: May 6, 2014.