Radiant City

Friday January 2, 2009 -- Opening Night Film

Something's happening on the edge of town.  There's a desperate housewife in the parking lot, a musical chorus line mowing the lawn - and a loaded gun in the upstairs closet. Welcome to Radiant City, an entertaining and startling new film on 21st century suburbanites.

A chorus of cultural prophets provide insight on the spectacle. James Howard Kunstler, author of The Geography of Nowhere, rails against the brutalizing aesthetic of strip malls. Philosopher Joseph Heath fears the soul-eating burbs but admits they offer good value for money. And urban planner Beverly Sandalack dares to ask, "Why can't we walk anywhere anymore?"

Gary Burns, Canada's king of surreal comedy, joins journalist Jim Brown on an outing to the burbs. Venturing into territory both familiar and foreign, they turn the documentary genre inside out, crafting a vivid account of life in The Late Suburban Age. Burns and Brown rummage through a toybox of cultural references, from Jane Jacobs to The Sopranos, to create a provocative reflection on why we live the way we do. Riffing off sitcoms and reality TV, they play fast and loose with a range of cinematic devices to consider what happens when cities get sick and mutate.

More info: http://www.radiantcitymovie.com/

Trailer: http://www.radiantcitymovie.com/player/player.htm

Green Builders

Saturday January 3

A quiet green revolution in the building world is evolving, and a first wave of innovative green design projects large and small have already on the ground. NJN’s Green Builders profiles a cast of green building pioneers who have taken the leap into making their part of the “built environment” a more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly place.

More info: http://njn.net/television/specials/greenbuilders/

Mark Biedron, architect and founder of The Willow School

Saturday January 3

Burning the Future

Sunday January 4

In Burning the Future: Coal in America, writer/director David Novack examines the explosive forces that have set in motion a groundswell of conflict between the coal industry and residents of West Virginia. Confronted by an emerging coal-based US energy policy, local activists watch the nation praise coal without regard to the devastation caused by its extraction. Faced with toxic ground water, the obliteration of 1.4 million acres of mountains, and a government that appeases industry, our heroes demonstrate a strength of purpose and character in their improbable fight to arouse the nation's help in protecting their mountains, saving their families, and preserving their way of life.

More info: http://www.burningthefuture.org/

FEATURED SPEAKERS

Kevin Lyons

Climate Central:

Berrien Moore III, Heidi Cullen and Charles Lyons

Addicted to Plastic

Friday January 9

From styrofoam cups to artificial organs, plastics are perhaps the most ubiquitous and versatile material ever invented. No invention in the past 100 years has had more influence and presence than synthetics. But such progress has had a cost.

For better and for worse, no ecosystem or segment of human activity has escaped the shrink-wrapped grasp of plastic. Addicted To Plastic is a global journey to investigate what we really know about the material of a thousand uses and why there's so darn much of it. On the way we discover a toxic legacy, and the men and women dedicated to cleaning it up.

More info: http://www.crypticmoth.com/plastic.php

The Greening of Southie

Saturday January 10

What happens when you’re asked to build the city of tomorrow… today? Set on the rugged streets of South Boston, The Greening of Southie is the story of a revolutionary Green Building, and the men and women who bring it to life. From wheatboard cabinetry to recycled steel, bamboo flooring to dual-flush toilets, The Macallen Building is something different––a leader in the emerging field of environmentally friendly design.

But Boston’s steel-toed construction workers aren’t sure they like it. And when things on the building start to go wrong, the young development team has to keep the project from unraveling. Funny and poignant, The Greening of Southie is a story of bold ideas, unlikely environmentalists, and the future of the way we live.

Created by the co-producers and stars of King Corn, Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, The Greening of Southie features cinematography by Taylor Gentry, innovative time-lapse animation, and music by the Brooklyn-based duo Force Theory.

More info: http://www.greeningofsouthie.com/

Greetings from Asbury Park

Sunday January 10

Angie, 91, lived through three decades of rust, riot and ruin in Asbury Park, the one-time postcard paradise of the Jersey Shore. Now the tiny bungalow that she has called home, for half her life will be seized by eminent domain.

Hundreds of homes, apartment buildings, local businesses, are boarded up, ready for the wrecking ball. In fact, 29 city blocks, 56 acres of waterfront property and historic boardwalk attractions now belong to a private developer and will be razed to make way for 3,100 luxury condominiums, an ersatz city within a city.

But this is welcome progress, and terrific tax revenues, say city officials. The revitalized Asbury Park will be a thrilling combination of SoHo and South Beach. Meanwhile, the bulldozers are in Angie's backyard, and Angie's attorney breaks the news to her. A court case challenge is difficult and costly. This could be the last summer her beloved garden will be in bloom.

More info: www.greetingsfromasburyparkmovie.com