Thursday, March 12 7pm   GOSPEL HILL Directed by Giancarlo Esposito  Angela Bassett and Danny Glover lead a celebrated cast including Julia Stiles, Adam Baldwin and Giancarlo Esposito in this riveting tale about a decades-old murder mystery and a town struggling to overcome the ghosts of its tormented past. In the town of Julia, prejudice is still an unspoken part of life thirty years after the assassination of a beloved civil rights leader. And his son, John (Glover), has learned to live with the memory of the unsolved murder and the town's thin veneer of peace. As dissension threatens to tear the community apart, an explosive revelation forces John to act...and to choose between forgiveness and renewed hatred. Filmmaker in attendance.

Friday, March 13 6pm   SHORTS BLOCK   TOUCHE 2m Directed by Maurice Martinez Satire: Delusions of grandeur evaporate when arrogance encounters retort.   BUBBLE GUTS Directed by Troy Whitehurst aka Spike Spillberg 7m  A successful marketing executive in the midst of closing a huge deal with a major client is suddenly overtaken by a case of the bubble guts. Filmmaker in attendance.    DO YOU 40m Directed by Gordon S. Williams  Paula Teague and Frank Bradshaw have only one thing in common: they want their children to end their current relationship. The Bradshaws, a Southern white family, are surprised to meet their daughter Keisha’s boyfriend, Cameron Teague, who is black. Filmmaker in attendance.   TWO JOINTS, THREE CONDOMS, AND A DOG NAMED FIFI  18m Directed by Jeruvia  On the night of his 18th birthday, Tre and his girlfriend are ready to have sex for the very first time. Unfortunately, everything goes wrong on this special night as we end up where the story begins – in the hospital. Looking back, it’s clear things went wrong beginning with the two joints, three condoms, and a dog named Fifi. Filmmaker in attendance.   WHEN THE SHOE’S ON THE OTHER FOOT  49m Directed by Gary C. Hughes A short exploring domestic violence against men. And, no, size doesn’t matter.

Friday, March 13, 2009 9:00 p.m. URSULA RUCKER: POET 30 min  Directed by Michael J. Dennis Internationally acclaimed poet and spoken-word artist Ursula Rucker first gained fame for her recorded collaborations with fellow Philly musicians King Britt and The Roots. Having released three solo CDs and toured the world, she is profiled for the first time in this revealing new documentary from the maker of Jazzyfatnastees: In Process (Cine Noir Best Documentary 2003) Featuring exclusive "unplugged" performances of some of her best known work, with appearances by Dr. Sonia Sanchez, Saul Williams, King Britt, Wadud Ahmad, Lyrispect and The Roots. A Poetry Jam, hosted by Coast 97.3's Bigg B will follow.

FREE SENIOR CINEMA   Saturday, March 14 12 noon THE THIRTEENTH AMENDMENT   Directed by Michael Dennis 4m     This documentary short follows a 90-year-old great-great-grandmother on her trek to vote for Barack Obama in the 2008 Pennsylvania primary. Having voted all of her life, this is the first time she’s had the opportunity to vote for a black man for the office of President of the United States.   GOTTA DANCE!   95m Directed by Dori Berinstein   GOTTA DANCE chronicles the debut of the New Jersey Nets’ first-ever, senior hip-hop dance team, 12 women and 1 man, all dance team newbies, from auditions through to center court stardom. As smooth dance moves are perfected and performed in front of thousands, aging myths and misperceptions are pulverized.   FREE FAMILY CINEMA   2:00 P.M. SEEING IT IN COLOR: REMEMBERING THE CANETUCK ROSENWALD SCHOOL   12 minutes Directed by Claudia Stack and Kyle Holt   The Rosenwald Fund was the driving force behind the construction of over 5000 black schools between 1917 and 1932. This short documentary about Canetuck, one of the best preserved Rosenwald schools in Pender County, was produced by Pender County students.   GETTIN’ GROWN   Directed by Aaron Greer 74m   An African American boy comes of age when he must complete a task for his family that exposes him to the sometimes risky choices of inner-city life. A cinema verité and unsensationalized day in the life of a loving black family trying to raise a responsible child.

MORE DOC BLOCKS 4pm ONE LITTLE DIFFERENCE 53m Directed by Elan Sobel   See life through the lens of children with sickle cell anemia at Camp Crescent Moon, a specialized camp now in its 42nd year. 6pm  DADDY HUNGER 37m Directed by Ray Upchurch and Thomas Drayton A powerful documentary on the absence of fathers in the African-American community. Convicted murderers, single mothers and others tell their story.     8:00 p.m. CLEAN MIC: LAUGHING UNTIL IT HURTS  63m Directed by Will Gorham   A thought provoking journey into the realities facing ethnic comedians performing in American comedy clubs. The film follows Washington, DC and New York City comedians as they attempt to perform clean comedy in an unclean world. Saturday Night Live veteran Dean Edwards and Don Imus Co-host Karith Foster keep the jokes coming with their non-traditional take on Urban Comedy. Social comedy icons Dick Gregory and Paul Mooney reflect on their own personal observations and experiences in stand up comedy.

SATURDAY NIGHT FEATURE 10pm   LOSING GROUND 100m Directed by Darnell J. Anderson   A suspenseful drama about the life of young black businessman Clay Howard, whose comfortable and ostensibly perfect life is turned upside down when he has an affair with seductive realtor. Selfish ambition and pride drive him to fulfill his late father’s dream of owning a jazz club at the expense of his family, friendships, and even his own soul.

Sunday, March 15 2pm RENAISSANCE VILLAGE 85m Directed by Gabe Chasnoff A gritty and uncompromising look at the delicate relationship between government and citizen in the wake of disaster. Renaissance Village is the untold story of the largest FEMA trailer park set up after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast. Acclaimed New Orleans native Wendell Pierce narrates the documentary with an original score from low country blues musicians throughout the Gulf Coast.

Closing Selection Sunday, March 15 4:00 p.m. MR. BONES Directed by Nathan Ross Freeman 1 h 54 m When three children survive a bus crash that kills their parents, their childhood dies as well until they find an unlikely partner in grief at the shallow grave of a long lost child in the woods of a desolate park. MR. BONES marks the feature film directorial debut of author and educator Nathan Ross Freeman, and features an ensemble cast of young actors from his landmark performing arts program, The Winston-Salem Youth Arts Institute. Filmed over three years on a shoestring budget, MR. BONES presents a stirring tableau of the modern African American experience.