Much More Than Meets The Eye > Sparking A Conversation

There was a September 20 post on this blog about the renamed Indie Lens Pop community cinema series . . . more details were offered yesterday in press release 549 from the City of Mesa Newsroom:

National screening series seeks to spark conversations in Mesa

Post Date:10/08/2015 10:33 AM

The first event of the 2015-2016 season is the screening of “Stray Dog” Thursday, Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m. at the Dobson Ranch Library, 2425 S. Dobson Road. “Stray Dog” is from Debra Granik, director of the Oscar-nominated movie “Winter’s Bone” and is the portrait of a motorcycle-riding Vietnam veteran. But there is much more to Ronnie “Stray Dog” Hall than meets the eye. Behind the tattoos and leather vest is a man dedicated to helping his fellow vets and immigrant family as he also comes to terms with his combat experience . . .
Following the 80 minute screening there will be a panel discussion led by Brett Petersen, a social worker and counselor at Marc Community Resources in Mesa, and Mike Pappa, U.S. Navy/U.S. Air Force Retired Veteran.
Blog Note: City of Mesa offers free locks for bikes [donations asked for] while this first event is all about a discussion of many issues including vets, immigration, relationships.
In support of Veterans who may suffer from PTSD, we will be holding a bike lock donation drive at the screening. Ride 2 Recovery is a non-profit organization who donates refurbished bicycles to those Veterans that may benefit from their use. If you would like to help, bring a lock to donate. All locks collected will go to the local Ride 2 Recovery programs.

More of the storyline is told in this article link here . The Dissolve sits down with the people behind the movies to talk about how they work and what drives them. Because the movies don't always tell the whole story . . . As Stray Dog progresses, the vet's aimless young granddaughter gets pregnant and has a baby, while his Mexican-immigrant wife Alicia struggles to bring her teenage sons Angel and Jesus to the country. Meanwhile, Hall counsels other veterans struggling with PTSD, attends veterans’ funerals, and participates in the multi-day Run For The Wall, a cross-country bikers’ pilgrimage to the Vietnam veterans memorial. It’s an emotional film, as Hall struggles with his past and helps other people with theirs, but also as he faces the present with humor.
 

Further along in the interview the director says this: Some of my biggest assumptions are about men, given how regions and genders divide us. They make me curious, “Why does the other gender do what they do?” Especially with bro-y men, or men that appear to really revel in and use their testosterone. If I can be a fly on the wall, or have an informant tell me what it’s like to be that person, again, I’m there. My ears are open. I’m taking as many notes as possible, photographically, emotionally—all devices going. These are things I can never know unless someone shares them with me. 




Public Information and Communications
Contact: Kevin Christopher
Tel. 480-644-4699
kevin.christopher@mesaaz.gov