“The Documentary Film Experience”

REDDING, CT, March 18, 2019– Blockbuster action movies and rom-coms may get a lot
of attention, but documentaries have become one of today’s hottest film genres — not just
on Netflix and HBO but at the box office, too.

Films by directors such as Michael Moore, D.A. Pennebaker and Laura Poitras have
explored cultural themes and shed light on news topics, capturing our attention in a way
that fictional stories can't always achieve.

To celebrate the art of documentary filmmaking, the Mark Twain Library will host
two special afternoons of screenings and panel discussions. The first, on Sunday, March
24 at 3:00pm, will feature Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, the Emmy Award-winning and
Oscar-nominated film that tells the story of the only US bank to be prosecuted in relation to
the 2008 financial crisis. Abacus Federal Savings Bank, a community bank serving
Manhattan’s Chinatown, owned by the Sung family, had one of the lowest mortgage loan
default rates in the industry. So why was such a small community bank targeted? The film
follows the legal battle and eventual exoneration of the bank, along the way exploring
possible motives behind the charges. Following the screening, Weston filmmaker Gavin
Guerra (director and producer of the voting rights film, Let the People Decide) will
moderate a discussion and question-and-answer session with members of the Sung family:
Heather (who lives in Redding), and her sisters Vera, Jill and Chanterelle.

On Sunday, March 31 at 3:00pm, the library will host a panel discussion with five
award-winning filmmakers: Cindy Meehl (Buck), Christopher Clements (Abacus: Small
Enough to Jail), Julie Goldman (Abacus: Small Enough to Jail, Life Animated), Gavin
Guerra (Let the People Decide), and Nick Verbitsky (Abacus: Small Enough to Jail,
Weinstein). Each documentarian will share a clip and discuss the filmmaking process, focusing on what inspires and drives their work. The conversation will be moderated by Redding resident and actress, Heather Whaley. A reception will follow the panel discussion.

Both programs are co-sponsored by Bethel Cinema.

Reflecting on the experience of having a film made about her family's experience
made Heather Sung realize how powerful the documentary can be. "For my family, [the
film] served as a starting point for healing," she said. "Documentary film can be a vehicle
for bringing awareness to little known, but important issues that allow for individual and
societal growth. This has had great value to us as a family."

Having a camera follow your family around could feel, at minimum, like an
invasion of privacy—at worst, it could induce fear of sensationalism. The Sungs were
aware of the pitfalls when the filmmakers approached them.

"The film was being shot in real-time so when we agreed to having the
documentary made we had no idea of what the outcome would be," Heather said. "But my
family has always been guided by principle and so we knew that even if the outcome wasn't
in our favor, there was a lesson to be learned through the story. This is why we ultimately
agreed to have the documentary made. If anything, it would provide future generations of
our family something to learn and reflect upon, long after we can no longer tell the history
ourselves."

Heather says that without the compassion, kindness and open mindedness of the
filmmakers (director Steve James, whose credits include Hoop Dreams and The
Interrupters, and producers Chris Clements and Julie Goldman) the family might not have
agreed to the process. The result is a film that achieves what Heather believes is the
ultimate goal of a documentary: “The documentary film allows us to open our eyes to lives
that are sometimes very different from our own in a nonthreatening way. It allows us to challenge our way of thinking without feeling vulnerable and therefore it pushes us harder to be active thinkers.

Please register online, at the Library or call 203-938-2545 for information.

The Mark Twain Library is owned by the Mark Twain Library Association. It was
founded in 1908 by Samuel Clemens – Mark Twain himself – one of Redding’s most
celebrated residents. Visit www.marktwainlibrary.org, for more information.