Wednesday February 1st

In Their Own Words: Iraqi Perspectives on the Occupation

6:30 pm - 8:15pm (doors open at 6:15pm)

Rutland Library's Fox Room, Court Street, Rutland

Free and Open to the Public

Independent journalist and filmmaker Brian Conley spent three weeks in Baghdad, Iraq in late 2005. While there he explored the lives of ordinary Iraqis who have now been living under U.S. occupation for nearly three years. His first hand perspective and footage from Baghdad show the continuing security, health, and infrastructure crises that continue to go unreported by the mainstream press.

Please join Brian as he shows video of Iraqi citizens sharing their thoughts and feelings about the US war and occupation of their country.

Brian Conley is a 25 year-old journalist and filmmaker. He is the founder of the Alive in Baghdad Project. During his first trip to Iraq, the Alive in Baghdad Project focused on interviewing Iraqis living in and outside Baghdad. At this point Brian is working on writing articles about the ongoing situation in Iraq and arranging the project's second phase. Previous to his trip to Iraq, he contributed to or produced seven films, traveled the United States, worked internationally in Quebec City and Guatemala, and has been shooting video for seven years. Through his work with Indymedia he has contributed to several films with international reach, most notably two films about the FTAA, Trading Freedom and more recently The Miami Model . However it is his independent work with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, the Miami Workers, and other organizations of Communities of Color that most define his dedication to the documentary trade. By providing a space for the voiceless, one works for a stronger dialogue and thus a stronger presence of freedom and democracy in the world. His most recent film to be completed is Libertad y Justicia, para Todos: un centavo mas, about the struggles of migrant workers in south Florida. It is the filmmaker's hope to return to Iraq in order to continue to expand on his body of work from Iraq. As the situation in Iraq continues to evolve, he hopes to continuing covering Iraq and providing an in-depth look at the perspective of the occupied.

For more information: www.aliveinbaghdad.org

Download PDF Flyer