Last Days in Vietnam
OCTOBER 2, 2015 LAST UPDATED: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 2015, 9:14 AM
BY MATTHEW SCHNEIDER
STAFF WRITER |
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
A popular annual event for film buffs is set to return to the Ridgewood Public Library starting tonight.
The Reel Voices Film Festival, now in its 13th consecutive year, is scheduled to open at 7:30 p.m.
Roberta Panjwani, the librarian in charge of the event, explained the process she takes when choosing the films. She views around 50 before selecting about five films.
“Each year I attend many documentary screenings at the Tribeca Film Festival” in New York City, Panjwani said, explaining that by doing this, she “can get a good sense of which films are really strong and those that will resonate with our community.”
Panjwani said that she also views films from other parts of the metropolitan area, in addition to obtaining preview copies from films shown around the country and internationally.
“The common thread is that each [film] takes on a humanitarian issue,” she said via email, “whether it be the aspect of the Vietnam War from all perspectives (‘Last Days in Vietnam’), the power of film in saving people from isolation (‘The Wolfpack’), the role of sports in opening up a future to inner-city students (‘In the Game’), or the unique connections made between unlikely strangers on a train (‘In Transit’).”
The event came about after Laura Barney, a member of the Friends of the Ridgewood Library, attended the American Museum of Natural History’s Margaret Mead Film & Video Festival, according to Panjwani.
Admission is $5 per program, paid either online or at the door.
For more information, visit ridgewoodlibrary.org/ #!reel-voices-2015/c1f3v.
