Thursday, September 4, 2014
7:30 p.m.
$9 (Complimentary hors d'oeuvres provided)
At
Ninth Street Independent Film Center
145 Ninth Street, between Mission and Howard, San Francisco
To attend, please RSVP by noon on September 4th to roughcutsrsvp@yahoo.com
Dogtown Redemption
Directed by Amir Soltani and Chihiro Wimbush
Alliance metals, a recycling center in West Oakland, is the lifeline for dozens of homeless and poor, offering them instant cash for their scavenging and serving as a de facto community hub. For six years, co-directors Amir Soltani and Chihiro Wimbush followed the lives of three of the homeless who redeem their recyclables at Alliance: Jason Witt, black belt, father of a seven-year-old son, and heroine addict; Landon Goodwin, former minister and longtime crack addict who struggles with his own fall from grace; and Miss Hayok Kay, former punk rocker and daughter of a prominent Korean family, now at the mercy of the elements and the neighborhood’s predators.
In the process, Soltani and Wimbush’s “Dogtown Redemption” unlocks a story about poverty in America that reaches beyond today’s headlines, CNN debates and campaign stump speeches. Their film also punches us in the gut, while, at the same time, offering us an understated, often moving celebration of the courage and determination of some of West Oakland’s poorest residents.
Moderator: Dan Krauss
Dan Krauss’s directorial debut, “The Death of Kevin Carter,” won an Academy Award (for “Documentary Short Subject”) and won prizes from the Tribeca Film Festival, IDA, and San Francisco International Film Festival, among others. His most recent film, “The Kill Team,” won The Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival and the Golden Gate Award at SFIFF. He has also photographed numerous feature documentaries, including “Inequality for All” (Sundance Film Festival, 2013 – Special Jury Prize) and “The Most Dangerous Man in America” (Academy Award nomination, 2010).