I helped pass out fan ballots and patron surveys to attendees before the movie was screened. Then, I was able to get a seat at the back of the hall to watch the film, a Brazilian/US documentary titled "Restless" ("Sem Descanso"). It looked at the 2014 killing in police custody of a young man from a poor neighborhood in Brazil. This film followed the efforts of the man's father and a newspaper to investigate what happened to the man and to find his remains for proper burial. This story is weaved with the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri the same week. The film was most interesting and thought provoking regarding police brutality towards people of color and poverty.
After the film, there was a question-and-answer session with Chris King, editor of the St. Louis American (http://www.stlamerican.com/), who was interviewed in "Restless." As the audience filed out of the hall, I collected the ballots and surveys to bring to the venue captain. It was a fine start to SLIFF for me.
The following Wednesday afternoon (13 November) found me at the Plaza Frontenac Cinema (https://www.landmarktheatres.com/st-louis/plaza-frontenac-cinema/) for my second SLIFF volunteer shift. I stood outside the two theaters SLIFF was using to take tickets from attendees, while other volunteers passed out ballots and surveys. The Italian drama "Twin Flower" ("Fiore gemello") was playing in one of the theaters. I was tempted to watch it, but figured I was needed outside the theater in case more volunteers didn't show up. In the end, those volunteers did come and all was well. I did help collect ballots and surveys from the people who saw "Twin Flower."
I will do my third and final volunteer shift of this year's SLIFF tonight at Webster University (http://www.webster.edu/). The festival runs until tomorrow night. Hope to see you!
Later.
