CAPA HIGH TO SCREEN
FILM: “WRITING ON THE WALL”
Pittsburgh, PA – In alignment with Homeless Children’s Awareness Week, CAPA High School
(111 Ninth Street, Downtown) will screen the film Writing on the Wall:
Remembering the Berlin Wall
at 5:00 PM on Saturday, October 15.
Writing
on the Wall tells the stories of
leaders and ordinary citizens caught in the political power struggle that was
the Berlin Wall. The film was released to coincide with the 20th anniversary of
the fall of the Wall, with its world premiere held in 2009 at the Museum of
Fine Arts in Boston.
"The
Berlin Wall holds both real and metaphorical meanings, its presence physically
dividing East and West Berlin, while symbolically representing Communist
oppression," says John Michalczyk, who co-produced the film with his
Boston College colleague Ronald Marsh. The film, shot on location in Berlin,
captures the personal narratives of both leaders and citizens.
The
film opens with the drama of November 9, 1989, “a symbolic day marking the last
gasp of the Cold War as Communism sustained over seven decades met its final
demise in Europe in a dramatic and bloodless revolution.” The documentary
memorializes the history of the Wall, the collapse of which brought about a new
united Germany. Through interviews with those who lived through these
challenging times of the Cold War, the film focuses on remembrance and
reassessment. Among the many voices and stories featured in the film are Edwina
Sandys, Winston Churchill’s granddaughter and Sergei Khrushchev, Nikita
Khrushchev's son.
Following
Saturday’s screening, there will be a discussion including the following
panelists:
·
Debbie Maier Jacknin,
Founder of the Pittsburgh Holocaust Project: The project’s mission is to teach about the Holocaust in a
creative manner, using multimedia and applying lessons from the Holocaust to
current issues. A documentary based on Holocaust Survivor Fred Reif’s story was
designed for three class sessions, examining choices, consequences of those
choices, and the final decision made.
· Dr. Ronald C. Arnett, Duquesne University Department of
Communication & Rhetorical Studies: Dr. Arnett is a department chair and scholar with an
international reputation on conflict-resolution, communication ethics, peace
studies, and dialogue. He has written extensively on issues and scholars coming
out of World War II, and is the author of the award-winning book Dialogic
Confession: Bonhoeffer’s Rhetoric of Responsibility.
· Dr. Erik A. Garrett, Assistant Professor Department
of
Communication & Rhetorical Studies, Duquesne University: “In addition to writing and researching on urban conflict,” Dr.
Garrett describes, “I also am a child of the Berlin Wall. My family story is
tied to this place from which my mother escaped under machine gun fire. I also
was in Berlin the year following the fall of the wall, seeing family that had been
separated for 50 years.”
Homeless Children’s
Awareness Week is hosted by Homeless Children’s Education Fund. For a list of
the week’s other events, or for more information about Homeless Children’s
Education Fund, visit www.homelessfund.org.
Since 1999, The
Homeless Children’s Education Fund (HCEF), a 501(c)(3)
not-for-profit organization, has been dedicated to ensuring that the homeless children living in shelters throughout Allegheny
County have equal access to the same educational
resources, opportunities and experiences as their peers. HCEF’s Web site
is www.homelessfund.org.