NIU’s College of Education invites students, faculty, staff and community members to attend its ongoing Diversity in Film series.
The free series of contemporary films covers topics depicting race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, ability and their intersections.
All movies will be shown in Faraday 144 from 3 to 5:45 p.m. Faculty will moderate discussions following the films.
Tuesday, Feb. 4: Pariah
A Brooklyn teenager juggles conflicting identities and risks friendship, heartbreak, and family in a desperate search for sexual expression. This feature film is a stunning and candid view into the challenges of being honest with oneself, one’s peers and one’s family. (2011)
Tuesday, Feb. 18: Boys Don’t Cry
Based on actual events, director Kimberly Peirce’s powerful, often harrowing drama stars Hilary Swank as Brandon Teena, a transgender person searching for love and acceptance in a small Midwestern town. Swank’s performance earned her an Academy Award for Best Female Actor. (1999)
Tuesday, March 18: Crash
Winner of an Oscar for Best Picture, “Crash” exposes the deep-seated prejudices and assumptions in all people. In post-9/11 Los Angeles, tensions erupt when the lives of a Brentwood housewife, her district attorney husband, a Persian shopkeeper, two cops, a pair of carjackers and a Korean couple converge during a 36-hour period. Considered one of the most important films about diversity in the new century. (2004)
T
uesday, April 15: The Interrupters
This powerful documentary follows Ceasefire, a Chicago-based group – staffed by former gang members – that is dedicated to wiping out urban violence. The organization treats violence like an infection and seeks to eradicate the root cause. (2011)
Tuesday, April 29: Fruitvale Station
This dramatic rendering of a real-life tragedy recounts the final hours of Oscar Grant, shot by San Francisco transit police on New Year’s Day, 2009. In portraying the energy Oscar brought to life, the film mourns the tragic loss of a unique soul. The film has already won several awards and is being considered for several Academy Award nominations. (2013)
Faculty moderators are Monique Bernoudy, James Cohen, Joe Flynn, Connie Fox, Molly Holmes, Becqui Hunt and Mike Manderino.
For more information, call (815) 753-1948 or email cedu@niu.edu.
