Another SOLD OUT SCREENING!! 3 for 3!

For three nights in a row now, the NarrowGauge Theater in Farmington, Maine has had sold out screenings of THE WAY WE GET BY. People are recommending the film to their families members and telling them to come out this week to see the film. Go MAINERS!! We're off to a great start with our theater run and I am so proud of everyone helping make this film a success!!

Thoughts on THE WAY WE GET BY @ Atlanta Film Festival

A Handshake and Three Simple Words
By Guest Blogger: Johann Lohrmann

It starts with a handshake and the words ‘welcome home heroes’. Yesterday I had the privilege of sitting in a theatre in Atlanta, Georgia to watch the film, The Way We Get By. The best films tell a story that not only holds the audience’s attention but inspires reflection and action. The Way We Get By does exactly that.

William Knight, Joan Gaudet and Jerry Mundy make daily treks to the airport to greet the troops who are leaving or returning for duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. The servicemen, servicewomen and the troop greeters share the uncertainty that is life. Both are fighting an external and internal war. The external war is the elements. The internal war is loneliness.

You can see in their eyes that loneliness is never far away. Here are three souls in the latter part of their lives. They could either sit at home feeling sorry for themselves or they could make a difference in the life of a stranger. How many of us in times of loneliness have thought to reach out to those who are in need? Interestingly enough, reaching out to others helps not only the other person in need but it diminishes the loneliness. It turns out we need each other.

William, Joan and Jerry have different obstacles to overcome. Some are health related. Some are financially related. Some are dealing with seeing their loved ones leaving to fight overseas. No matter what the obstacle the troop greeters have resolved to be a part of the solution. All of us are faced with one problem or another. But it is how we move through the barrier that makes all the difference. We can be sad, feel sorry for ourselves or we can decide to act and make the situation better. These three senior citizens make a difference in the soldier’s lives.

This film offers so many lessons. It reminds me of the power of the simple act of kindness. It teaches the importance of having a purpose. It reinforces the lesson that all are worthy of love and respect no matter what their age or ability.

It made me think about what is truly important. There is a purpose that is beyond one’s identity. In this case there are three senior citizens who are smashing the notions of what it means to be a senior. Just because you retire does not mean you stop living. If anything, that is the time of life when you can share your knowledge and experience with the younger generations.

The title of the film The Way We Get By is appropriately named. Yes, these three seniors may not move very fast and they may require the aid of a walker. It may take them longer to get to where they are going but in so many ways they are considerably light years ahead of where the rest of us need to be.

If you have a chance to see The Way We Get By, do it. I enjoyed it and it made me think of what I can do to make this world a better place for those who may not be so fortunate. It will do the same for you.

Merci,

Johann Lohrmann
www.johannlohrmann.com

Atlanta based Johann Lohrmann was recently nominated for an Emmy for his documentary, How I Survived World War II. It explored how soldiers, children and those who lived and served during World War II survived. His work has appeared on PBS, BET, TimeWarner and online. He recently finished production on the award-winning documentary, Where Wealth Lives: An Exploration of the African-American Economic Experience. It is slated for national release on PBS in 2010. He has two documentaries in production.

Boston screening-COME ON OUT!

I wanted to let you know that we are having a very special screening in Boston on April 26 at 12pm at the Brattle Theater. We're hoping that you could let your friends in Boston know about the screening....also our three subjects..Bill, Joan and Jerry will be there to surprise the audience.

Help us spread the word!

Here is a link for additional info:

http://www.thewaywegetbymovie.com/independent-film-festival-boston/2009-04-26

SEE YOU THIS SUNDAY!!

THE WAY WE GET BY wins in Atlanta

We won BEST DOCUMENTARY at the Atlanta Film Festival!

http://atlantafilmfestival.com/component/option,com_myblog/show,09-ATLFF-Jury-Award-Winners.html/Itemid,48/

Crowds Come Out in Maine

So just a quick update here....we got the final totals for our four screenings at the Collins Center for the Arts in Orono, Maine. According to the venue, 2, 248 people came out to our screenings! That's huge!!

We're kicking off our 12 theater run in Maine so please check out our screenings page for additional information. Tell your friends and family to come on out and see the film. We'll also be announcing theater showings in other states shortly so stay tuned!!

Maine Premiere-- Collins Center for the Arts- Orono, ME

The Way We Get By had its Maine premiere on Thursday night. Bangor Savings Bank sponsored the screening for us and treated us all like stars for the night.

It was an unforgettable evening. Bill, Joan and Jerry were picked up in a white Cadillac Escalade limo. They were surpised as it pulled up to the Collins Center for the Arts with a line of military members greeting them as they walked on the red carpet into the building. They were taken to a VIP reception where they as well as the rest of the troop greeters were honored for their service. Aron and I also received a Proclamation from the State Legislators.

People were escorted into the theater--there were about 1300 people in attendance. The Color Guard posted the flags and the Governor and a number of other key people recognized the greeters and our film. The Governor then presented us with a special award for the film and community service. It was all surreal since we hadn't even screened the film yet. Then, finally the lights were dimmed and the film began.

The audience was really into the film--the crowd laughed and cried through all the right spots and afterwards Bill, Joan, Jerry and our film team received a standing ovation. I could see Bill, Jerry and Joan beaming throughout the night. I know they never expected all of this but it was so amazing to see them recognized in this way.

The next day, there was a great film review by the Bangor Daily News in the paper and a front page article about the Maine premiere. We're told this is the largest Maine movie premiere in the state so for us--we're just blown away.

It was a night to remember and I don't think I'll ever forget it.

TWWGB WINS AUDIENCE AWARD AT FULL FRAME FILM FESTIVAL

THE WAY WE GET BY wins the AUDIENCE AWARD at the Full Frame Film Festival!! THANK YOU to those who came out to watch our film in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. We are thrilled to win this prestigious award and are so excited to continue to screen the film to audiences across the country!

TWWGB at Full Frame Film Festival

This is a really great festival. On Thursday, Aron and I did a radio interview with WUNC's North Carolina's Public Radio. Click here to check out the audio clip. Frank Stasio was the host and he did a great job with our segment.

We screened at the largest venue with our 35mm film print at the Full Frame Film Festival. The venue, Carolina Theater-- Fletcher Hall, was absolutely beautiful and the film looked great on the big screen. For a 10:30am Friday screening we had a great crowd and the audience was really into the film. After our screening, we spoke to a group of volunteers for the festival who came in to see the film and they were very emotional afterwards. I told them--hey, you guys don't know what it means to see people connecting in such intimate ways with our film. This is such an amazing feeling for us as filmmakers!

We're exciting to check out more movies this weekend and I'll be back in touch with more updates shortly. Thanks for reading....