State Theatre in Traverse City to Host Motherbaby Film Festival

Beginning Wednesday October 15,  the State Theatre will host the Motherbaby
International Film Festival. This is a traveling film fest that plays in a
select list of cities around the world — and Traverse City, MI (and the
State Theatre in particular) was chosen to host this region’s presentation
of the three-day event.
 
The entire public is invited to this festival which kicks off Wednesday at
4:00 p.m. with "Miss Margaret" and "It’s My Body, My Baby,
My Birth" (filmmakers Diana Paul and Maria Iorillo will be in attendance), followed by
a film that premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, "The Business of
Being Born," at 6:30 p.m. (this screening is complimentary for healthcare
professionals).
 
The festival continues on Thursday with shorts programs at 1:00 p.m. and
2:30 p.m. At 4:00 p.m. two films about the important subject of autism —
"Finding the Words" and "Autism Yesterday" — will be presented by the
filmmakers Elizabeth Horn and Maureen Block, and at 6:30 Gary Null’s
"Vaccine Nation" will have its regional premiere, exploring the issue
of childhood vaccinations.

The winner of the 1977 Oscar for Best Documentary, "Who Are the DeBolts?
AndWhere Did They Get 19 Kids?" concludes the day at 9:00 p.m.
 
On Friday, actress and TV talk show host Ricki Lake will be at the State
Theatre in person with director Abby Epstein to present their film, "The
Business of Being Born," at 2:00 p.m. Ricki Lake, Abby Epstein and others
will then serve on a free panel, "Wild Naked Ladies," at 4:00 p.m.
"Pregnant in America" will screen at 5:00 p.m. with writer/director Steve
Buonaugurio and anthropologist Davis-Floyd in attendance. Finally, at 9:00 p.m.,
"Laboring Under an Illusion: Portrayal of Childbirth in the Mass
Media" will contrast Hollywood birth scenes with films made by natural childbirth
advocates. It will screen with "Knowledge of Birth (Birth of a Family)," and
both filmmakers will be present.
 
Another cool thing about the festival is that on Thursday and Friday
mornings they will present two of the best family films of all time: "Mary
Poppins" on Thursday at 10:00 a.m. and "The Incredibles" on
Friday at 10:00 a.m. These two films are free for kids 6 and under.
 
Admission to most festival events is $8.00 for adults and $6.00 for kids 2
to 12. (State Theatre Membership discounts do not apply.) Tickets can be
purchased at each show time, in advance at the State box office, or online:
http://www.statetheatretc.org/?page=buytickets
 
We are all different people, but there is one thing we have in common —
each of us was a baby. There isn’t much that’s more important than how
we treat newborns and children in our society. This impressive list of movies
at the State is a great chance to explore issues that are rarely discussed
on the evening news. I hope you come down in the next three days and check
them out.
 
Yours,
Michael Moore