We Are City Film Series set to launch at IMA

We Are City is an ongoing program series highlighting ideas for making cities better places to live, presented by the Indianapolis Museum of Art and Wishard Health Services with support from Butler University Center for Urban Ecology, Indiana Humanities, Big Car, URBN DSGN and The Platform, with promotional support provided by NUVO.

“The name We Are City comes from the notion that we, Indianapolis, need to continue to embrace the inherent benefits and challenges to being a city,” says Michael Kaufmann of Wishard.  “This series is an effort to build consensus around a variety of topics, to form a shared narrative around our values and vision for Indianapolis.”

The We Are City Film Series uses new documentary films to trigger dialogue about topics related to quality of life in Indy.  “We need constant creative effort to improve the way life is lived in the Circle City,” says Anne Laker of the IMA public programs department.  “This type of civic discussion is a continuation of the trend of these types of events over the past few years, such as Pecha Kucha, Think Farm, the Urbanized Summit hosted at IMA last fall, and the IndyTalks series.”

Each film will followed by a brief on-stage dialogue with local players in the field.  After that, everyone’s invited to take matters into their own hands at “action tables.” Anyone can start a table, to pose questions such as: How can we advance Indy’s food culture?  What needs to happen to continue to bolster the biking culture in our city?  What can we do to be more consciously creative when we look at planning for the housing needs of those who are struggling to make it?

Tickets to the films are available onsite at IMA or at imamuseum.org or via 317-955-2339.  Film line-up:

TOPIC: Indy’s food culture

FILM: A Matter of Taste

Thursday, February 23 / 7 pm

The Toby, IMA

Public $5 / IMA Members $3

A Matter of Taste (2010, dir. Sally Rowe, 72 mins.) is a compelling film profile of a New York chef named Paul Liebrandt.  The film follows him over the course of almost a decade as he defines his artistic culinary vision. A rare insight into the competitive, creative world of haute cuisine, this documentary charts Paul’s struggles in and out of the kitchen as he tries to realize his potential.  After the film, be part of a dialogue about Indianapolis’ food culture – how do chefs and restaurateurs contribute to our city’s quality of life?  Hear a brief on-stage Q&A with players in the field, including Cynthia Wilson of Kountry Kitchen, Neal Brown of The Libertine, and Becky Hostetter of Duos Indy. Then, reconvene in the IMA’s Nourish Café to “action tables” hosted by food critics Terry Kirts and Jolene Katzenberger, Indy Winter Farmer’s Market master Laura Henderson, and IUPUI chef Nate Jackson.   

TOPIC: Indy’s bike culture

FILM: With My Own Two Wheels

Thursday, March 22 / 7 pm

The Toby, IMA

Public $5 / IMA Members $3

For many Americans, the bicycle is a choice. An expensive toy. An eco-conscious mode of transportation. For citizens across the globe, it is much more.  For Fred, a health worker in Zambia, the bicycle is a means of reaching twice as many patients. For Bharati, a teenager in India, it provides access to education. For Mirriam, a disabled Ghanaian woman, working on bicycles is an escape from stigma. With My Own Two Wheels (2010, dirs. Jacob Seigel-Boettner and Isaac Seigel-Boettner, 44 mins.) weaves together the experiences of five individuals into a single story about how the bicycle might change the world.  How can bicycling change the culture of Indianapolis? Screening co-presented by INDYCOG.  Speakers and table hosts TBD.

TOPIC: Affordable housing and urban design

FILM: The Pruitt-Igoe Myth: An Urban History

Thursday, April 5 / 7 pm

The Toby, IMA

Public $5 / IMA Members $3

It began as a housing marvel. Two decades later, it ended in rubble. The world-famous image of the implosion of the Pruitt-Igoe public housing project in St. Louis has helped to perpetuate a myth of failure that has been used to criticize both Modernist architecture and public housing residents. The Pruitt-Igoe Myth (2011, dir. Chad Friedrichs, 79 mins.) tells the story of the transformation of the American city in the decades after World War II, when suburbanization led to destitute urban cores, increasingly segregated by class and race.  The residents of Pruitt-Igoe were among the hardest hit. Their memories of survival, adaptation, challenge, and success are the emotional heart of the film. Stay for a discussion about residential architecture and affordable housing in Indianapolis.  Screening co-presented by Heartland Truly Moving Pictures. Speakers and table hosts TBD.