A wonderful new film, “The Boys Who Said No”,  is, to me, a provocation to act in the now, a way to learn from the inside of real voices of those who led the anti-draft movement, who grew from a meager few hundred to rivers of people protesting. The movement that created the soil where subsequent multiple movements grew and flourished throughout the 60s and 70s.Though a historical film looking back at the 1960s and 1970s, I believe this film has profound lessons for all of us now.

I have watched this film close-up from its nascent beginnings from an idea in a living room to a full blown film launch and have always thought of it as a training film for the current climate movement.

The film is directed by the brilliant Director Judith Ehrlich, who had done the Oscar nominated film, The Most Dangerous Man in America, featuring Daniel Ellsberg who released the Pentagon Papers.

The film features multiple voices, including Joan Baez, the folk singer/nonviolent activist who introduced Bob Dylan to the world and who co-founded in the mid-60s the Institute for the Study of Nonviolence, to help her learn about Gandhi, nonviolence and protest politics. And her husband, David Harris, who spent two years in prison. A confession. My husband, Lee Swenson, who was the Director of Joan Baez’s Institute for the Study of Nonviolence, from 1969-1975 is also in this film. This film is premiering at the Mill Valley Film Festival this coming Thursday! Please join us. It will be a celebration of protest, of successful protesting, and of getting what the community demanded, even if it took years in the making. To be able to see the ups and downs of that movement is to be able to give us now a way to see how movements spread in astonishing ways! This gives me hope!

 

WITH PRIDE AND DELIGHT WE ANNOUNCEThe U.S. Premiere of The Boys Who Said NO! in October at Two Film Festivals In a unique collaboration, two top Northern California film festivals will present the US Premiere of The Boys Who Said NO! in October. The film was specially selected by one festival for their opening night and the other for their closing night, an honor that speaks to the power of our film. Limited tickets to both are available for virtual online viewing – one nationwide, the other limited to California. Mill Valley Film Festival OCTOBER 8 – OPENING NIGHTView October 8-14 – Nationwide Includes recorded Q&A with David Harris and director Judith EhrlichORDER TICKETS NOW View Nationwide United Nations Association Film Festival  (UNAFF) OCTOBER 25 – CLOSING NIGHTView October 25 – California only Includes live Q&A with director Judith EhrlichORDER TICKETS ON OCT. 3 View California Only These two screenings will take place shortly before the election, one of the most challenging and critical times in our nation’s history. America – and the world – need this inspiring story now, affirming the immense power of nonviolent resistance to catalyze social change. Please share this announcement with your family and friends. “A stand out film . . . Profound and startling in its revelation of how the revolution to justice starts with one person understanding their power to say no. Fascinating because it is a movement from the beginning to end offering lessons learnt to future fighters for justice.” – Annie McLoughlin, Showreel WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE FILM? These film festival screenings are only the beginning! Our goal is to get The Boys Who Said NO! distributed and seen as widely as possible for maximum inspiration in this challenging time. We have interest from other film festivals, international and educational distributors, and an agent seeking national broadcast.We’ll keep you informed of other opportunities to view the film online or even (hopefully) in person. HOST A SCREENING The film will be available soon for group and community screenings! If you’d like to host a screening, please signup here and we’ll let you know when the film is available. MELBOURNE FILM FESTIVAL Our Australian screening at the Melbourne Documentary Film Festival in July was a big success – one of only four films to sell out. The film garnered great reviews, two of which are included in this email. “Some films are too important not to see. The Boys Who Said NO! is one of those films.” – Documentary Drive HONORING OUR FOUNDING PRODUCER As we launch The Boys Who Said NO! into the world, we are ever grateful to Christopher Colorado Jones, who initiated the film and dedicated the last 6 years of his life to making it a reality. He would be very proud that the film is now finished and screening at its first film festivals and getting great reviews. This film is Christopher’s legacy for us all to celebrate. A HUGE THANK YOU! None of this would be possible without your faithful support, along with over one thousand other donors and volunteers, who have helped make this film possible. We hope you’ll join us online at one of the festival events in October to see the results of our collective efforts. We look forward to sharing with you more news about the distribution of the film in the coming weeks. On behalf of our Film Team, thank you for helping to make this film a reality! Bill Prince, Producer THE BOYS WHO SAID NO! Judith Ehrlich, Director & Co-Producer THE BOYS WHO SAID NO!

THE BOYS WHO SAID NO! Draft Resistance & the Vietnam War www.boyswhosaidno.comYou are receiving this email because you opted in via our website or an event. Kind Earth Productions PO Box 14008 San Francisco, CA 94114-0008 Add us to your address book update preferences or unsubscribe