Unprecedented: Young Chicago Non-Profit Hosts International Social Change Film Festival in Three States
Social Change, a national non-profit, will host its 6th annual Social Change Film Festival in three states: Illinois, California and New York. The Chicago showcase will run from October 13th — 15th at the renowned Harold Washington Cultural Center (HWCC), a Social Change partner for the event, which partners with national and international organizations to bring artistic content to all and uses performing arts and media to create social action and to deter at-risk behavior in the over 25,000 youth in Chicago and beyond. The Los Angeles and New York showcases will run on October 21st at West LA College and on October 28th at the the Downtown Community Television Center, respectively.
Social Change’s one-of-a-kind, 3-state festival will feature nearly 30 life-changing short films from all over the world (more than half of the films are international) all with the purpose of motivating social action by the spectators. Some highlights include:
- 16 World premieres, one of which is from first time filmmaker Monica Raymund, who stars as Gabriela Dawson in NBC’s drama Chicago Fire
- Films with famous actors like Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips), Anthony Anderson (from the hit show Black-ish), and Eamonn Walker (from the critically acclaimed show Chicago Fire)
- The film Fear from Chicago’s own filmmaker Chan Smith regarding Chicago’s violence
The Social Change Festival doesn’t shy away from controversial topics. This year’s festival expects to host over 2,000 people and will cover social justice topics like: immigration, the criminal justice system, poverty and water access in developing nations, women’s empowerment, health, food insecurity, fatherhood, addiction, protest, racial injustice, violence, gangs, conflict in the Middle East, labor, foster care, human trafficking and more. Each state’s festival will boast a red carpet and receptions. The festivals will have countless other opportunities to interview, engage or simply have fun with established leaders, filmmakers and actors from Hollywood and beyond.
Don’t miss this unprecedented event!
The Executive Director of Social Change is Todd Belcore who is also a
Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law School
@ToddBelcore @CISCFF speaks on YouTube about the festival.
SCHEDULE:
Chicago, Oct. 13th-15th — Harold Washington Cultural Center, 4701 S Martin Luther King Dr, Chicago, IL 60653
October 13th:
· 5:00 pm — red carpet arrivals
· 6–6:30 pm — opening ceremony and remarks
· 6:30–7:30 pm — opening night films
· 7:30–8:00 pm — discussion
· 8–9:00 pm — reception
October 14th & October 15th:
· 12–2:00 pm — film block and discussion
· 2–4:00 pm — film block and discussion
· 6–9:00 pm — film block, discussion and reception
Los Angeles, October 21th — West Los Angeles College, 9000 Overland Ave., Culver City, CA 9023
New York, October 28th — Downtown Community Television Center, 87 Lafayette St #3, New York, NY 10013
October 21st & October 28th:
· 1–2:00 pm — red carpet & reception
· 2–4:00 pm — film block and discussion
· 4–6:00 pm — film block and discussion
· 6–8:00 pm — film block and discussion
· 8–9:00 pm — reception
Social Change has done a lot over the past year. Social Change proposed over 30 system reforms in multiple states-with legislation signed into law ranging from Comprehensive Bail Reform and a bill ensuring people are properly informed of the consequences of pleading guilty before doing so in IL to a good government Whistleblower Bill in Missouri to decrease improper government action. Social Change was also the recipient of over 40 media mentions, radio or television appearances. Social Change has also provided direct assistance or training to over 50 individuals and organizations on how to exercise their rights in the courts or work effectively to get better outcomes systemically. Finally, Social Change has sponsored several direct service programs with partners to provide food, clothing, legal assistance and more to communities and organizations.
Stay connected! To get Social Change updates or get involved, click here.
What Social Change has done this past year:
- Proposed over 30 system reforms (passing 7 bills in multiple states-with legislation signed into law ranging from Comprehensive Bail Reform and a bill ensuring people are properly informed of the consequences of pleading guilty before doing so in IL to a good government Whistleblower Bill in Missouri to decrease improper government action)
- Was featured in over 40 media mentions, radio or TV appearances
- Interacted with over 100,000 people via Social Media
- Trained over 50 individuals and organizations on rights, remedies and on the steps necessary to accelerate their impact
- Sponsored several direct service programs with partners to provide food, clothing, legal assistance and more to communities and organizations
- Secured three cities to showcase our annual Social Change Film Festival (in Chicago October 13–15, Los Angeles October 21 and New York October 28) after hosting over 1,000 at our 5th Annual Social Change Film Fest
