Award-winning director, producer and writer Stanley Nelson to introduce his 2006 documentary “Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple” at Detroit Institute of Arts’ Detroit Film Theatre
Updated Feb 13, 2018
February 13, 2018 (Detroit)—Award-winning writer, producer and director Stanley Nelson will be at the Detroit Institute of Arts’ (DIA) Detroit Film Theatre (DFT) Thursday, March 1 at 7:30 p.m. to introduce a screening of his 2006 Emmy-nominated documentary “Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple.” Following the movie, Nelson will engage in an audience discussion about the film and his career.
“Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple” tells the story of a cult led by preacher Jim Jones, who in 1978 led more than 900 members of his religious group to a settlement in Guyana called Jonestown, which culminated in a mass murder/suicide. The movie features interviews with former cult members, Jonestown survivors and people who knew Jones.
Nelson’s numerous awards include a MacArthur Fellowship “Genius” grant; Best Documentary at the San Francisco Film Festival and Freedom of Expression Award at the Sundance Film Festival for his 1999 film “The Black Press: Soldiers with Swords”; prime-time Emmys for “Freedom Riders” and “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution”; American Film Institute Guggenheim Symposium Honoree; Lifetime Achievement Award from the News & Documentary Emmy Awards; and the 2013 National Humanities Medal from President Barack Obama.
In addition to the documentaries mentioned above, Nelson’s films include “Wounded Knee,” “Sweet Honey in the Rock: Raise Your Voice,” “A Place of Our Own” and “The Murder of Emmett Till.”
Nelson is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and executive director and co-founder of Firelight Media with his wife, writer and producer Marcia Smith. The organization received the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions in 2015.
Tickets: $9.50 general admission; $7.50 seniors, students and DIA members. Tickets are available at dia.org or by calling 313-855-4005.
Nelson’s presentation is made possible by the Bob Allison (Allesee) Endowed Chair in Media at Wayne State University’s Department of Communication, College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts and is in partnership with the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History.
Museum Hours and Admission
9 a.m.–4 p.m. Tuesdays–Thursdays, 9 a.m.–10 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. General admission (excludes ticketed exhibitions) is free for Wayne, Oakland and Macomb county residents and DIA members. For all others, $14 for adults, $9 for seniors ages 62+, $8 for college students, $6 for ages 6–17. For membership information, call 313-833-7971.
February 13, 2018 (Detroit)—Award-winning writer, producer and director Stanley Nelson will be at the Detroit Institute of Arts’ (DIA) Detroit Film Theatre (DFT) Thursday, March 1 at 7:30 p.m. to introduce a screening of his 2006 Emmy-nominated documentary “Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple.” Following the movie, Nelson will engage in an audience discussion about the film and his career.
“Jonestown: The Life and Death of the Peoples Temple” tells the story of a cult led by preacher Jim Jones, who in 1978 led more than 900 members of his religious group to a settlement in Guyana called Jonestown, which culminated in a mass murder/suicide. The movie features interviews with former cult members, Jonestown survivors and people who knew Jones.
Nelson’s numerous awards include a MacArthur Fellowship “Genius” grant; Best Documentary at the San Francisco Film Festival and Freedom of Expression Award at the Sundance Film Festival for his 1999 film “The Black Press: Soldiers with Swords”; prime-time Emmys for “Freedom Riders” and “The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution”; American Film Institute Guggenheim Symposium Honoree; Lifetime Achievement Award from the News & Documentary Emmy Awards; and the 2013 National Humanities Medal from President Barack Obama.
In addition to the documentaries mentioned above, Nelson’s films include “Wounded Knee,” “Sweet Honey in the Rock: Raise Your Voice,” “A Place of Our Own” and “The Murder of Emmett Till.”
Nelson is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and executive director and co-founder of Firelight Media with his wife, writer and producer Marcia Smith. The organization received the MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions in 2015.
Tickets: $9.50 general admission; $7.50 seniors, students and DIA members. Tickets are available at dia.org or by calling 313-855-4005.
Nelson’s presentation is made possible by the Bob Allison (Allesee) Endowed Chair in Media at Wayne State University’s Department of Communication, College of Fine, Performing and Communication Arts and is in partnership with the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History.
Museum Hours and Admission
9 a.m.–4 p.m. Tuesdays–Thursdays, 9 a.m.–10 p.m. Fridays, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. General admission (excludes ticketed exhibitions) is free for Wayne, Oakland and Macomb county residents and DIA members. For all others, $14 for adults, $9 for seniors ages 62+, $8 for college students, $6 for ages 6–17. For membership information, call 313-833-7971.