The Rooftop Films 2008 Summer Series

Untitled Document David Novack examines the explosive forces that have set in motion a groundswell of conflict between the coal industry and residents of West Virginia. *Venue: Along the water at Solar One *Address: East 23rd Street and the East River in Manhattan *Directions: 6 Train to 23rd street and walk East to the river . MAP *8:00: Doors Open *8:30: The Films *Admission: FREE! FILM WEBSITE | SOLAR ONE | REVIEWS Quick Facts: 36% of US global warming emissions comes from the approximately 501 coal-burning power plants that provide the nation with over half its electricity - more than all other sources combined. Every eleven and one-half days, the explosive equivalent of the Hiroshima atomic bomb is unleashed upon the mountains of southern West Virginia and eastern Kentucky - for coal. Short Synopsis: 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. Reviews: "This compelling and timely film burns through the 'clean coal' rhetoric of industry front groups, showing the harsh truth of the coal story and urging us all to curb our energy use and rely more on clean energy to power our society." Bruce Nilles, Director, National Coal Campaign Sierra Club "Burning the Future is a powerful and stirring account of the cultural and ecological impacts of an industry on its last legs - a testimony from the front-lines of resistance to coal." Rebecca Tarbotton, Global Campaign Director Rainforest Action Network "...This moving and disturbing story adds the human element to a sanitized political debate by telling the dirty truth about coal in America. Burning the Future just might help us move politicians to solve global warming and our country's energy needs through clean power now." Pam Solo, Founder and President Civil Society Institute "Think your electricity usage doesn't matter? Think again! Novak's film enlivens the phrase 'think globally, act locally' as you journey with West Virginia residents in their courageous efforts to save their beloved mountains, communities and ultimately life on earth as we know it." Janet Keating, Co-Director Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition

Josh, Benny and Alex roam the world with video cameras in hand, capturing loose, magical moments. They collect these instances like they are little buttons, so that is what they call them. Red Bucket's first feature film, The Pleasure of Being Robbed was selected for the 2008 Cannes Directors Fortnight and will be playing September 19th at Rooftop Films.

World Premiere! The amazing story of Clayton Patterson, prolific photo documentarian of the turbulent Lower East Side for 30 years. Venue: on the roof of the Open Road Rooftop Address: 350 Grand Street @ Essex (Lower East Side, Manhattan) Directions: F/J/M/Z to Essex / Delancey Rain: In the event of rain the show will be held indoors at the same location 8:00PM: Doors open 8:30PM: Sound Fix presents live music by A.R.E. Weapons 9:00PM: Films 11:30PM - 1:00AM: Open Bar After Party at Fontana’s (105 Eldridge St @ Grand) Courtesy of Radeberger beer Tickets: $9 at going.com Presented in partnership with: IFC.com , New York magazine , Open Road New York & New Design High School PROGRAM NOTES: 20 years before there was YouTube, and Macaca, Critical Mass arrest videos, and the RNC, Clayton Patterson was capturing video that exposed the struggle between community activists and the often abusive NYPD. He dedicated his life to documenting the final era of raw creativity and lawlessness in New York City's Lower East Side, a neighborhood famed for art, music and revolutionary minds. Traversing the outside edge, he's recorded this dark and colorful society--from drag and hardcore, heroin, homelessness, to political chaos and, ultimately, gentrification. In the LES of the late 70’s and early 80’s, it seemed that it was impossible to take a boring photograph. Realizing this, Patterson vowed to himself not to miss a moment, and he was a ubiquitous presence on the streets, in bars, and at parties, shooting literally hundreds of thousands of photographs and countless videos that captured the essence of the era in what might have been the most thrilling neighborhood on earth. For native New Yorkers, looking at his documents is like staring through a window to our own past, and the drugs, piercings, mohawks, kangols and graffiti on display are, in this context, not kitschy and nostalgic. Rather, they express the rich diversity of many little communities living together in a troubled little niche of the city, long ago changed beyond recognition. Those who have lived in New York since the 70’s remember when the Lower East Side was not merely an edgy, popular neighborhood with a bustling night life. Back then, it was a cauldron in which avant-garde music and art were stirred together with punk rock and the nascent hip hop culture; and it was also a dirty, crumbling, and often quite dangerous place to live. When Patterson began, he was not anticipating that this dingy neighborhood populated by lower class Puerto Ricans, Jewish immigrants, radical squatters, and decadent hipsters would someday become a desirable location to live and the locus of the city’s never-ending cycle of gentrification. He just thought the place was wild, unpredictable, and undeniably beautiful in a gloriously ugly sort of way. But even for long-time residents who can recall those days, the videos of the Tompkins Square Riots captured by Patterson in 1988 are a bracing reminder that, just 20 years ago, the battle between New York’s poorer residents and our professional-class gentrifiers was not fought in the newspapers and the city council. Back then, this fight was fought in the streets. There couldn’t be a more perfect setting for the world premiere of this enrapturing documentary than amidst the stunning graffiti murals of Open Road Rooftop. Located atop a public high school in the heart of the Lower East Side, Open Road is one of the few remaining links to the radical urban culture of 80’s that shaped the life and art of Clayton Patterson. His odyssey from voyeur to political provocateur reveals that it can take losing everything you love to find your own significance.

Shane also wants to be understood, but there’s only so much compassion going around. A comic tale about twins.

An ominous fable about a young girl and her collection of dead things.

Why are there always jewelry stores next to check-cashing spots? Why is there only 1 bank per 50,000 people living in Bushwick? Is it actually fun to make it rain on the streets of Brooklyn with real dollar bills? Dallas and Rafi take us around check-cashing joints in Brooklyn to answer these and other questions. Says Dallas: “You know you’ve made it when you go from check-cashing fees to ATM fees.”

This lighthearted but poignant personal essay film is a meditation on the United States’ ongoing courtship with radioactivity, and the way our obsession with productivity has lead us down some pretty strange and dangerous paths.

Wilted rock idol Bobby Bird (Rooftop 6/29/07) literally tries to buy a friend when he adopts a monkey from a zoo in South America. A touching and darkly humane film about good friends, bad drugs, and standing by your monkey.

Can films change the world? What role can filmmakers play in local community activism and global policy change?. On Saturday, June 14, in conjunction with IndiePix and Shooting People, Rooftop Films will host two panel discussions, on The Art of the Short Film and Cinema and Social Justice , bringing in filmmakers, programmers and funders to discuss issues that are crucial to Rooftop Films’ mission. THE ART OF THE SHORT FILM: Can films change the world? What role can filmmakers play in local community activism and global policy change? Filmmakers can tap into the power of storytelling to translate complicated issues into stories that people can relate to, engaging audiences and motivating change. This can take place in many ways, from small shifts in perception to epic battles in Congress and the courts. Filmmakers also deal with social justice on a very local and personal level, as artists fighting for health insurance, sustainable incomes, and vibrant communities to live in. Hear from filmmakers about the possibilities for impact and outreach in their neighborhoods and beyond and get inspired by their passion for filmmaking, connectivity and the possibilities for change. Panelists include: Ryan Harrington (Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund); Simon Kilmurry (Executive Director of POV); Esther Robinson (director, A Walk Into the Sea ; Founder of Art Home), and Katy Chevigny (Director, Election Day ; Co-Founder of Arts Engine). Ticket price includes admission to both two panel discussions ( The Art of the Short Films and Cinema and Social Justice ), a reception in the Old American Can Factory Courtyard with free wine courtesy of Brooklyn Oenology , and admission to the short film screening Industriance Shorts: Eminent Domain .