Coming to NYC’s Maysles Cinema as an encore screening for the Harlem International Film Festival next Wednesday, July 6: FREEING SILVIA BARALDINI
Directors Margo Pelletier and Lisa Thomas have won a number of awards from regional festivals with their documentary debut, including the best documentary prize at the Harlem fest.
Their film tells the story of Italian-born, US-based political prisoner Silvia Baraldini, who was sentenced to over 40 years in prison for her revolutionary political activist work in the 1960s-1980s.Copious archival footage illustrate present day interviews that sketch out Baraldini’s background and dawning political consciousness, which included participation in the civil rights movement and later anti-war efforts. Seeing the value in coalition building, she supported the Black Panthers, which ultimately led to her arrest after she helped a Black Panther leader, Assata Shakur, escape from prison. Silvia is a compelling figure whose story should be better known – FREEING SILVIA BARALDINI helps bring her legacy of resisting injustice in multiple forms to new audiences.
what (not) to doc 