Schedule for Fall 2008
November 24, 2008
Speaker: Michael McKinley
The final event of this semester’s Pandora’s Box will be on Monday, November 24th. It features journalist, author, screenwriter, and documentary film maker Michael McKinley of Vancouver, Canada, who will speak about “The Challenge of Filming Religious Topics in the Middle East.”
Winner of British Columbia Film’s New Views Award, he co-produced the CBC TV documentary film Sacred Ballot, about the successor to Pope John Paul II. He also co-wrote and co-produced The Mystery of Jesus, a documentary examining the historical Jesus, as well as The Two Marys: The Madonna and the Magdalene which aired on CNN in December 2004 and After Jesus – The First Christians, which aired on CNN in December 2006.
He has also written several books on ice hockey including Hockey Hall of Fame Legends: The Official Book and Hockey: A People’s History and Ice Time: The Story of Hockey, the companion books to the ten-part CBC TV series Hockey: A People’s History.
English professor Michael Sofranko will introduce the speaker, and the event is open to the public and the HCC community. It starts at 12:30 p.m. in the Cyber Lounge at the Katy Campus, 1550 Foxlake Drive, Houston, TX 77084.
Film: What would Jesus Buy?
On Tuesday and Wednesday, November 11 and 12, Pandora’s Box Continuing Education Class features the documentary What Would Jesus Buy? (91 min). The film follows Reverend Billy and the Church of Stop Shopping and its Gospel Choir as they go on a cross-country bus tour on a mission to save Christmas. Why? The Shopocalypse: the end of mankind from consumerism, over-consumption and fires of eternal debt! The charismatic bleached-blonde minister takes his choir and their beat-up bus to stage protests at Wal-Mart headquarters, Mall of America, Disneyland, Starbuck’s, etc. Michael Gonzales, Art, will present the film and lead discussions on Tuesday, and Laura Smith, Guided Studies, will do so on Wednesday.
Trailer — “What Would Jesus Buy?”
Film: Taxi to the Dark Side
Why did an Afghan taxi driver never return from a day’s work? What happened to him? On Wednesday, November 5, Pandora’s Box continuing education class presents the 2008 Oscar winner for Best Documentary Film, Taxi to the Dark Side (106 min). By unraveling the mystery behind the death of an innocent taxi driver, the film exposes more than his killers. It reveals the effects of torture as a U.S. interrogation technique. Jim Thomas, history, will present the film and lead discussions.
Trailer “Taxi to the Dark Side”
For more information:
Film: Bhutan (57 min)
How should a country judge its prosperity? Is Gross National Product the best measure? What vision might preserve its soul? On Tuesday, November 4, Pandora’s Box Film and Speaker series open enrollment continuing education class features Bhutan (57 min), a documentary which examines the lofty goals of the young, new King of Bhutan. His administration seeks to preserve Bhutan’s heritage, to steward its environment, and to develop its economy according to GNH: Gross National Happiness. Bryant Evans, geography, will present the film and lead discussions. Katy Campus Cyber Lounge at 12:30pm on Tuesday November 4.
Bhutan Movie Trailer
For more information:
Film website at http://www.bhutanfilm.com/
http://www.kingdomofbhutan.com
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/bttoc.html
http://www.pbs.org/edens/bhutan/
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/03/bhutan/larmer-text