Thursday, June 14, 2018 | 6PM

6PM – 8PM | reception with filmmaker Dan McCabe | 8PM | screening followed by Q&A
// FREE //

Presented by Basilica Non-Fiction Screening Series in collaboration with NeXt Doc
Food and drink for purchase by Kingston’s Duo
Learn more about Basilica’s 2018 film program

The Basilica Non-Fiction Screening Series will launch on June 14 with a screening of Hudson based filmmaker Daniel McCabe’s THIS IS CONGO, with McCabe in conversation following the screening. The film provides an immersive and unfiltered look into Africa’s longest continuing conflict and those who are surviving within it. By following four compelling characters — a whistleblower, a patriotic military commander, a mineral dealer and a displaced tailor — the film offers viewers a Congolese perspective on the problems that plague this lushly beautiful nation.

“Mama Romance, Hakiza, Mamadou and “Colonel Kasongo” live the story of a country plagued by instability and exploitation,” says Daniel McCabe of the film’s four central characters. “By giving voice to the often unheard, feared and exoticized Congo, they put themselves at risk in the name of helping create a true picture of one of the most complicated conflicts in the world. I found their stories and struggles universal and was continually moved by their strength of will and drive for peace and stability. Their dedication and desire to share with the outside world, despite the potential danger to their lives, is bold, and I hope that THIS IS CONGO does them justice. They deserve it.”

The event will be a hometown screening for Hudson resident McCabe, and will take place two weeks before the film’s official theatrical release nationwide. Food and drink will be available for purchase throughout the evening, supplied by Kingston restaurant and food truck DUO, with an after-party featuring music and dancing following the screening.

Explore the documentary genre through screenings and dialogue with visiting directors with a season of FREE public screenings, programmed in collaboration with NeXt Doc – a program of Youth FX and the Logan Non-Fiction Program.

We are thrilled to partner with Youth FX. Cultivating the voices of young people is more crucial than ever, and Youth FX’s commitment to nurturing and inspiring the next generation of filmmakers is deeply aligned in Basilica’s commitment to independent voices in film. Through programs like NeXt Doc, they help ensure that real-life voices are empowered to tell their own stories through the language of cinema.

ABOUT BASILICA NON-FICTION SCREENING SERIES
THIS IS CONGO marks the return of Basilica Hudson’s Basilica Non-Fiction Screening Series, which explores the documentary genre through screenings and dialogue with visiting directors. Now in its third year, the series was developed in partnership with Chris Boekmann of Colombia MO’s acclaimed True/False Film Fest. The 2018 series will be produced in collaboration with NeXt Doc, a program of Youth FX and the Logan Non-Fiction Program, and newly formalized partners of True/False Film Fest.

The series has previously included documentary films including Oscar nominee Abacus: Small Enough To Jail and is part of Basilica’s long-standing film program. Now in its seventh year, Basilica’s film program has displayed a longstanding commitment to bringing independent and innovative voices in film to the Hudson waterfront, through new and repertory film and video art, often with filmmakers and special guests in conversation.

The Basilica Non-Fiction Screening Series is part of Watch + Talk, which is is supported by a grant from the Fund for Columbia County, a fund of Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation.

ABOUT NEXT DOC
Albany-based Youth FX is committed to amplifying the voices of people of color through digital filmmaking and storytelling, and NeXt Doc, an intensive fellowship program, brings together emerging documentary storytellers with award-winning documentary filmmakers to learn, share, and build their skills. NeXt Doc gathers a dynamic community of emerging documentary filmmakers aged 18-24 at The Carey Institute’s campus in upstate New York and provides an inspiring five days of learning, sharing and building community. A partnership between Youth FX and the Carey Institute for Global Good, NeXt Doc brings together emerging documentary storytellers from across the country with award-winning documentary filmmakers to learn, share, and build skills. The NeXt Doc program includes masterclasses and film screenings presented by award-winning filmmakers along with workshops led by our team that explore project development, treatment writing, budgeting, doc history and critical explorations of power and representation in non-fiction storytelling. NeXt Doc is a one-of-a-kind opportunity for young diverse documentary filmmakers.