The Human Rights Watch Film Festival wrapped up their New York run last Thursday, June 22
nd at Lincoln Center. The first and final screening, Zach Niles and Banker White’s
The Refugee All Stars was the perfect bookend, encapsulating the festival’s objective: “to put a human face on threats to individual freedom and give a voice to those who might otherwise be silenced.”
The Refugee All Stars tells the story of six Sierra Leonean musicians forced to escape into the Republic of Guinea during the 1991 civil war. Together they form a band and travel throughout refugee camps offering musical inspiration to fellow survivors. The film provides a recurring message, one that all of the Human Rights Watch filmmakers would agree on; art can save lives. While rooted in a conflict that has since been resolved (thanks to the 1999 Lomé Peace Accord),
The Refugee All Stars contains subtle moments that speak to today’s audiences. In a candid scene the band’s drummer lifts his drumsticks into the air addressing the camera, “You cannot compare this to a gun.” The festival, which opened on June 9
th, showcased fifteen films including Michael Winterbottom and Mat Whitecross’
The Road to Guantánamo and a special sneak preview of Shari Robertson and Michael Camerini’s
My American Dream: How Democracy Works Now.
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posted by Laura Davies @ 6/29/2006 01:00:00 PM
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