I know some of you guys have heard of Heidi from virushead.net
(she has a great list of JW jokes
)
I had an email off her today, which is a real downer
I will copy it into here for you all to read
(she has a great list of JW jokes
I had an email off her today, which is a real downer
I will copy it into here for you all to read
Quote:
My dear fellow ex-JWS:
The upcoming PBS movie (and later, full-length DVD) called "Knocking" looks as though it will present JWs in a very flattering light.
"They won't pledge allegiance. They won't go to war. They won't accept blood transfusions. Civil Libertarians? Holocaust martyrs? Medical revolutionaries? Chronicling the unpopular stands of three Jehovah's Witnesses, KNOCKING reveals how this misunderstood and often derided Christian group has contributed to society in ways far greater and more surprising than a knock on the door."
I wrote an initial email to the director through the website at www.knocking.org, but got this (see below) in response. It reads like it was written by a JW, doesn't it? He says that is not a JW (and his articles at www.sfweekly.com/search/r...y_start=51 suggest that he is gay, so that might be true), but his mother is, and they appear to be marketing it to JWs as a tool. It doesn't look like they will entertain much in the way of criticisms - it's a documentary aimed at lionizing the contributions JWs have made to the public sphere on the topics of civil liberties, freedom of religion, holocaust martyrdom, and bloodless medicine. It doesn't look as though they will get into a critical stance much, if at all. My gut feeling is that it will be something very close to a PR piece/witnessing tool - they say they want to counter the false impressions and caricaturing of beliefs...
See my blog post at
www.virushead.net/vhrando...ng-on-jws/
Might be worth an email to CPB or to PBS. There are other funders, including www.filmarts.org/
itvs.org/producers/recentlyfunded.html
Congratulations to recently ITVS-funded producers Joel P. Engardio and Tom Shepard for their project "Knocking," a documentary that looks at three Jehovah's Witnesses and the hardships of spreading the word in America's neighborhoods, and reveals how this group "has contributed to society in ways far greater and surprising than a knock on the door."
A Google search on his name reveals more information:
www.freeminds.org/women/k...sponse.htm
www.sfweekly.com/issues/1...news2.html
Engardio, Joel P. "Jehovah's Witnesses' Untold Story of Resistance to Nazis." The Christian Science Monitor, 6 November 1996, 88:240, pp. 1&13.
www.newday.com/filmmakers...epard.html
Best
Dr. Heidi L Nordberg
www.virushead.net
-------Original Message-------
From: knockingdirector@knocking.org
Date: 08/11/05 18:30:53
To: heidi@virushead.net
Subject: Knocking Update
KNOCKING DOCUMENTARY NEWSLETTER #1 SUMMER 2005
Thanks for your interest in the KNOCKING documentary about Jehovah's Witnesses. I'm Joel Engardio, director of the project. Since the www.knocking.org web site went live recently, I've been hearing from interested ones from Arizona to Arkansas and everywhere in between. The site is new, and is still a work-in-progress. Check back from time to time to see new features, including the film clip downloads.
SPREAD THE WORD
Please forward the link www.knocking.org far and wide. Beyond a national broadcast on public television (PBS) in the United States, our goal is to make the film available to international audiences with language subtitles. Indeed, Jehovah's Witnesses are in more than 200 lands, and their story about blood, the Holocaust and preservation of civil liberties resonates around the globe.
OUR GOAL
The aim of KNOCKING is to give a general, non-Jehovah's Witness audience a fair look at a religious group that has long been misunderstood and relegated to cartoonish stereotypes. KNOCKING uses the real life stories of real families to humanize Jehovah's Witnesses. But we dont shy from criticism. Our aim is that everything is fair and accurate. We show both the ups and downs, including what it is like for Witnesses who have unbelieving or opposing family members, and how divided families can find common ground. For instance, the young man who undergoes a groundbreaking bloodless liver transplant has opposing family members who come to the hospital to see first-hand how the new bloodless technology works.
WHO SHOULD WATCH
KNOCKING will be educational and illuminating for a non-Jehovah's Witness audience. Extended family, neighbors, co-workers and classmates of Jehovahs Witnesses will certainly be interested to take a look. Closer to time of broadcast, we will offer DVDs for home and school use. The DVD will be a feature-length version of the film (the broadcast on PBS will be shorter) and will include extras like expanded interviews. Well be sure to send more details on that later.
PRODUCTION HISTORY
As of Summer 2005, the film is being edited in San Francisco. Throughout the course of the project, we filmed in California, Georgia, Ohio, New York, Nevada, and Texas as well as Austria and Poland. We filmed in Kingdom Halls, conventions and in the door-to-door ministry.
WE ARE INDEPENDENT
Keep in mind that every Jehovah's Witness who has contributed to this film, either on camera or behind the scenes, has done so by their own personal choice. There is no official connection to the Watchtower Society, though the Bethel organization in Brooklyn, Patterson and Wallkill, New York has been cooperative with the producers of this film. We interviewed Watchtower representatives on camera and filmed inside Bethel. Watchtower has no financial ties to this project, nor any editorial control. It is important to know that this project is independently produced for public television, using a combination of public, foundation and individual funds. No one on the production staff is a Jehovah's Witness. The director's mother, however, is a Witness. And we do have Jehovah's Witnesses who are serving as consultants for factual accuracy. We also have academic, historical and medical consultants who are experts in their field but not Jehovah's Witnesses.
HOW TO SEE IT
We intend to premiere KNOCKING at a prestigious film festival such as Sundance in early 2006. A national television broadcast on PBS will follow. And the film will be made available on DVD. We also hope to bring KNOCKING to cities throughout the United States in 2006 for special screenings. This will be a chance for you to see a sneak preview and perhaps meet some of the film's subjects in a live Q&A session. The KNOCKING web site and these newsletters will provide updated information about where and when the sneak previews will take place. If you are interested in volunteering to organize such a screening in your city, contact us directly at knockingdirector@msn.com. Please type Volunteer in the subject heading.
We look forward to seeing the positive impact this film has in telling the untold stories of Jehovah's Witnesses. We hope you do, too. Thanks again for contacting us, and the KNOCKING staff will be sure to keep you up to date on the latest progress.
Sincerely,
Joel P. Engardio
Producer/Director
-----------
Posted at www.freeminds.org/guestlog.htm
I think KNOCKING will be educational and illuminating for a non-Jehovah's Witness audience, affirming for those who are Jehovah's Witnesses, and compelling and entertaining for all. I imagine Jehovah's Witnesses will enjoy the film and will want their extended family, neighbors, co-workers and classmates to take a look as well. We will eventually offer DVDs for home and school use. There will be a special introductory rate for Jehovah's Witnesses. I'll be sure to send more details on that later. In the coming months, I'll send periodic newsletter updates on the film. If you don't want these updates, just write back and tell me to take you off the mailing list. As of June 3, 2005, the film is being edited in San Francisco. We finished production earlier this year. Throughout the course of the project, we filmed in California, Georgia, Ohio, New York, Nevada, and Texas as well as Austria and Poland. We may have filmed in your congregation or at one of your conventions! Throughout the summer we will continue to edit, crafting more than 200 hours of footage into a 60 or 90 minute final film. Thankfully, the DVD will be able to retain all the wonderful additional scenes and interviews that end up on the cutting room floor. The film will be delivered to PBS in the fall, and it will be entered in film festivals such as Sundance. In early 2006, we hope the film will premiere at a prestigious film festival. The national television broadcast on PBS would follow later in 2006. Between a film festival premiere and the national broadcast, we hope to bring KNOCKING to cities throughout the United States for special screenings in community event theaters. This will be a chance for you to see a sneak preview and perhaps meet some of the film's subjects in a live Q&A session. ...
I'm not a Witness, but my mother is. As a jouralist and filmmaker, I am moved by the incredible untold story of Jehovah's Witnesses. A good story is a good story, period.
