The 14th Annual Global Issues Film Festival will take place from January 21-30 at Kettering University. All films are free and open to the public and will be shown at Kettering’s McKinnon Theater in the Academic Building on the corner of University and Chevrolet Avenues.
Use #KetteringGIFF to share your thoughts and insights on the films on social media.
Below is information on the films in the festival with corresponding showtimes.
Thursday, January 21, 7 p.m.
INEQUALITY FOR ALL (2013). Directed by Jacob Kornbluth. 90 min.
In the wake of the U.S. economic crisis, the widening gap between the rich and the poor has gained unprecedented public awareness. Noted economist and UC Berkeley professor Robert Reich, helps us understand how extreme inequality we are now facing has roots in policy changes that began over 30 years ago. Through newly shot and archival footage, as well as innovative graphics, we learn how we got here and where we are headed if we don’t act soon. Punctuated by moments that allow us to know Reich, we also see his passion to return our society to one in which the American dream is possible for everyone. Do not miss this winner of the Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival!
Thursday, January 28, 7 p.m.
BIKES VS. CARS (2015). Directed by Fredrik Gertten. 91 min.
Climate change and gridlocks frustrate people more than ever. Instead of whining, people around the world take on the bike as a Do-It-Yourself solution. But road rage and poor city planning result in daily deaths of bicyclists. Activists and politicians face multi-billion dollar car, oil, and construction industries that use all their means to keep society car dependent. BIKES VS. CARS examines the struggle for biking in
societies dominated by cars and the changes that could take place if more cities moved away from car-centric models. Having won awards in several film festivals—including CinemAmbiente Environmental Film Festival, the UK Green Film Festival, and Docs Against Gravity Film Festival—this film was recently released in U.S. theaters. We are proud to bring it to you for FREE!
Friday, January 29, 7 p.m.
WHEN ELEPHANTS FIGHT (2015). Directed by Mike Ramsdell. 87 min.
The Congo is tremendously rich in oil, gas, rubber, and other natural resources. Mineral ores have come to be as precious as ivory and diamonds given how crucial they are to the global electronics and weapons industries. But the wealth from these products has primarily gone to colonial powers, dictators, rebel fighters, and foreign companies, not to lay people. Taking its title from the Congolese proverb "When elephants fight, it’s the grass that suffers," this film examines the devastation wrought by the trade in "conflict minerals" and urges us to see—and do something about—the way we, as consumers, are implicated in the corruption and violence that plague the region.
Please join us for a post-film discussion with the film's director, Flint’s Mike Ramsdell.
Saturday, January 30, 1 p.m. McKinnon Theater, Kettering University
100% DAKAR – MORE THAN ART (2014). Directed by Sandra Krampelhuber. 62 min.
Dakar, Senegal booms with life and this energy can also be found in the creative, artistic, and cultural expressions of the city. Many young artists in Dakar have taken on the role of agents of change of their generation. 100% DAKAR visits fashion designers, hip hop musicians, graffiti artists, a photographer, an art blogger, dancers and many other artists and cultural entrepreneurs who stand for creativity, passion, social conscience, and a collective, creative fight against all economic and political burdens.
Saturday, January 30, 2:30 p.m.
QUITTE LE POUVOIR/WADE, GET OUT! (2014). Directed by Aida Grovestins. 46 min.
In 2011 Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade declared that he would run for a third term in the elections, knowing fully well that the Constitution does not allow it. 'Y'en a marre' (Fed Up) was founded that same year. The rappers and activists of this group used music and door-to-door campaigns to call upon youth to demonstrate against Wade's candidacy. They urged people to register and use their voting card as their democratic weapon. Y'en a marre succeeded in registering 300,000 new voters, a record number. Its success has inspired young people from other West African countries to also engage in pacifist civil movements.
Please join us for a post-film discussion with Dr. Badri Rao, Associate Professor in the Department of Liberal Studies at Kettering University.