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A SHOW FOR A CHANGE FILM FESTIVAL ANNOUNCES FEBRUARY 2020 AWARD WINNERS FOR SOCIAL IMPACT FILMS

Long Beach, CA – March 13, 2020 – A Show For A Change today announced several winners for its monthly global film festival, celebrating social impact films from around the world. The awarded films include projects from around the world and were created by numerous celebrated filmmakers.

“We’re proud to recognize these powerful films that advance the social causes of our time,” said Jared Milrad, founder and president of A Show For A Change. “Our festival continues to attract a strong diversity of socially conscious films from around the world. This month’s awarded films address timely causes, including criminal justice, economic inequality, and diversity & inclusion.”

This month’s winners include:

● Social Impact Award: Trapped: Cash Bail in America. Directed by Garrett Hubbard and Chris L. Jenkins. What happens to your life when you are arrested for a non-violent crime but you're stuck in jail only because you are poor and don't have the money for your release? Every day in America, hundreds of thousands of legally innocent people sit behind bars simply because they cannot afford bail. This documentary provides an intimate look at the people ensnared in the cash bail trap, the activists and attorneys fighting to bring change to the system and the special interests who hope to keep money bail an everyday practice in America.

● Creativity Award: The #1 Bus Chronicles. Directed by Joel Katz. “The #1 Bus Chronicles” uses a small sociological microcosm – a bus stop on an industrial highway in New Jersey – to intimately portray some of the most marginalized lives in America today - the ‘working poor’, the recently incarcerated, and immigration asylum seekers. In startingly intimate encounters, strangers share hopes and dreams as well as resiliency, suffering and loss. Some are fleeting encounters; others draw us deeply into their lives. An interwoven series of portraits of people whose lives intersect at this single bus stop, “The #1 Bus Chronicles” takes us into their workplaces, homes, and day-to-day lives. Many are in states of transition, struggle, or waiting for change. Watch the trailer here.

● Storytelling Award: You bet I dance! - Und ob ich tanze! Directed by Lars Pape. In 2019, a dance workshop for children with cerebral palsy takes place for the first time in Germany, more precisely at the Staatsballett Berlin. Leonie and Hannah, two girls with very different manifestations of this early childhood brain injury, embark on their first big dance adventure together with eight other children. But what is possible for children with physical and sometimes also cognitive restrictions? And then at one of the best dance theaters in the world - the Staatsballett Berlin? The children give an impressive answer. They dance. In their own special way. Dancing means being happy. And that happiness makes the documentary "You bet I dance!" through the irrepressible zest for life of the children and the noticeable love of the parents formally tangible.

● Cinematography Award: 5-Cent Life. Directed by Yueh Phoebe Liu. The true story of Chinese citizen Lin Zhao who lived through the Chinese Civil War that led to the rise of the Communists. She attended a Christian school, but rejected Christian dogma and threw herself into Communist activity, killing wealthy landowners during Mao’s Land Reform Movement. During Mao’s 100-Flowers Movement, which encouraged young intellectuals and Party critics to provide suggestions to the Party, Lin Zhao eventually spoke up, declaring that the Communist Party should respect political freedom. After a change in policy, the authorities arrested her. In prison, Lin Zhao was tortured, and abused. During her 8-year incarceration, Lin Zhao wrote over 200,000 characters in her own blood on her sheets, uniforms, and cell walls before she was executed. Her mother was charged a 5-cent bullet fee. A group of compassionate jail guards smuggled out her writings after her death and gave them to her family. Watch the trailer here.

“We are honored to receive the Cinematography Award from A Show for A Change. My goal in making 5-Cent Life was to effect change by shedding light on a little-known story from Mao’s China. Many people, in and outside of China, have forgotten our past. Recent changes in China have felt to me like big steps backward. Learning from the past helps prevent us from make the same mistakes. The festival’s mission to change the world through the power of story defines my goal as a filmmaker, too. My cinematographer Johnny Ching’s steady hand, insightful eye, and solid vision for bringing this story to life elevated the film to the heights this important story deserves.” - Phoebe Yueh Liu, Director

"We are thrilled that the A Show For Change Film Festival has bestowed its prestigious Social Impact Award on our film that explores the injustice of the cash bail system in America. Every year, hundreds of thousands of Americans are needlessly detained in jails only because they are poor. We hope our film will shed light on this unconstitutional practice so that policy makers and others begin to consider more just and fair ways of treating those who are detained pretrial in the criminal justice system." - Chris Jenkins, producer and writer for "Trapped: Cash Bail in America.

“The #1 Bus Chronicles’ is a tribute to the resilience, strength, and tenacity of people who live near margins — low-wage workers, immigration detainees, and others who struggle to survive and prosper in American society.” - Joel Katz, Director

A Show For A Change invites filmmakers who share a passion for changing the world through the power of storytelling to submit to our monthly film festival. We seek diverse, engaging stories that address societal, environmental, and cultural issues. To apply for our next film festival, filmmakers can submit their projects by March 30, 2020 using this link: https://filmfreeway.com/ashowforachange

About A Show For A Change Film Festival

With 350+ global submissions, A Show For A Change has awarded some of the most creative, groundbreaking, and inspiring stories highlighting social issues since launching its monthly festival in December 2017. The company’s mission is to celebrate socially impactful films through the art of storytelling and advocate for enduring social change. It embraces films that challenge the status quo and stand up for urgent causes like human rights, animal rights, and the environment.

Learn more about our current projects and monthly global film festival at ashowforachange.com

Website: A Show For A Change

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