Indie Lens Pop Up - Best of Enemies

BEST OF ENEMIES

Indie Lens Pop-Up Nashville, TN

Carbondale, IL

Approximately 1,053 people attended 38 Indie Lens Pop-Up screenings of Best of Enemies in Sept-Oct ‘16. Audiences discussed the history and current state of political discourse, making ties to the 2016 presidential election.

Event Highlights: • 74% of event producers reported that their screenings and discussions made an impact on participants’ understanding, awareness, and/or attitudes around the issues in the film.

Honolulu, HI

• Carbondale, IL: WSIU’s event featured a presentation and post-screening discussion with the Southern Illinois University Debate Team. The event organizer shared “Because the SIU Debate Team is one of the top competitors in the nation, we wanted to connect these brilliant young rhetoricians to the general public.”

• Nashville, TN: Nashville Public Television partnered with the First Amendment Center, who hosted the screening at their venue and their president (and former editor of USA Today) moderated a spirited post-screening discussion. The event organizer reported that the film helped provide historical perspective on the current state of television journalism, debate, and civil discourse.

• Kansas City, MO: KCPT collaborated with American Public Square, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to changing the tone and quality of public discourse. Before the event the League of Women Voters was on hand to register voters and answer questions.

Midland, TX

• Louisville, KY: The Muhammad Ali Center’s conversation focused on media literacy and explored the entertainment- and dollar-driven side of cable news cultures. As they combined their screening with their high school youth program, the audience was predominantly teenagers of diverse ethnic backgrounds and gender identities.

• Concord, NH: New Hampshire Public Television and Red River Theatres partnered with the New Hampshire Institute of Politics to speak on their panel, and organization representatives shared their experiences as non-partisan observers while hosting a 2016 Presidential Primary Debate.

• Madison, WI: Madison Public Library created a book display of works by and about Buckley and Vidal for audience members to learn more. Their library was also a location for early voting, so they used the screening as an opportunity to spread the word about this service and encourage people to vote.

• Johnson, VT: Johnson State College’s panel included a former Vermont Senator and professors in political science and humanities. Students appreciated the opportunity to view and discuss the transitions in media coverage of elections. Many students expressed being unaware of Vidal and Buckley and their impact on American media before seeing the film.

BEST OF ENEMIES

Indie Lens Pop-Up Nashville, TN

What Audiences Are Saying: • “Thank you for stimulating civil public discourse of issues and ideas! How do we foster this throughout American society?” -Nashville, TN • “This was simply an excellent event. The film was very interesting.” -Carbondale, IL • “I think a really great moment in the film is that at one point in our history, media was the same for everyone. Everyone turned on the TV and we all watched the same reporting of an event.

And now you don’t get that at all.” -Carbondale, IL • “I will definitely have to tell people about this documentary.” -Kansas City, MO

Honolulu, HI

• “It feels so similar. They were talking about the top 5%, we talk about the 1%. It feels exactly the same. We need to study our history to learn from it.” -Louisville, KY • “Wonderful film - keep showing great ones like this.” -Colorado Springs, CO • “Very informative and entertaining.” -Berkeley, CA

What Partners Are Saying: • “ ‘Best of Enemies’ is a highly engaging film which is incredibly timely given the current election cycle we are in. Based on the post-screening discussion, the audience felt that it was highly applicable to the current media and political climate and extremely prescient in how it portrayed the bitter interaction between Vidal and Buckley.” - Nashville Public Television Concord, NH

• “The audience responded to both the film and the student debate team in a very positive way.

The debate team appreciated the opportunity to get out into the community and practice their skills in a different context. The library staff was very happy with the event and the audience indicated that their awareness of issues in the film had increased.” –WSIU (Carbondale, IL) • “I feel that the audience left more conscious of the media culture we live in, more cautious around what they consider ‘factual’ or ‘true,’ and more eager to study their history and it’s impact on current affairs.” -Muhammad Ali Center (Louisville, KY) • “ ‘Best of Enemies’ was very eyeopening in several ways. There is remarkable similarity in the issues addressed then and now. Vidal and Buckley could just have easily appeared on Fox News or MSNBC. It’s interesting to see that in some respects we haven’t come very far in the last 40+ years.” -Labette Community College (Parsons, KS)

Knoxville, TN

• “For me, this film was particularly relevant in raising the issue of political dialog in the US, especially during an election year.” -East Tennessee PBS (Knoxville, TN) • “Our students were engaged in the conversation after the film and many remarked about how many of the issues and comments occurring in 1968 are relevant to today’s presidential election, mainly the debates and rhetoric that is being spewed on both sides. This film is an excellent one to allow us to dig deeper into issues of political debates, civility and the power of words, even if 30 years have passed!” -Alaska Public Media and University of Alaska Anchorage • “The film had a tremendous impact on the audience. There was animated discussion focused largely on the excitement which Vidal and Buckley presented in their discourse. [An audience member] suggested that the film get to the school system and that the students in Camden needed to see it.” -Image Quilt (Camden, NJ) • “The film created some really interesting discussion among our audience and I feel as though it allowed members of our community an opportunity to discuss a topic that they feel is important today by looking to the past.” -Kellogg-Hubbard Library