The two 1993 Oscar-winning documentaries, Margaret Lazarus and Renner Wunderlich’s short Defending Our Lives and Susan Raymond’s feature I Am a Promise: The Children of Stanton Elementary School, will be screened as part of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ “Oscar’s Docs, Part Four: Academy Award-Winning Documentaries 1988–1997” series on Monday, Oct. 27, at 7:30 p.m. at the Linwood Dunn Theater in Hollywood.
Margaret Lazarus, Susan Raymond, and I Am a Promise producer Alan Raymond (top photo) will be on hand for post-screening discussions.
Defending Our Lives (below, right) is described as a presentation of the personal testimonies of four women imprisoned for killing the men who abused them.
According to the Academy’s press release, I Am a Promise: The Children of Stanton Elementary School “tells the story of a dedicated principal who tries to make a difference in a Philadelphia school composed entirely of African-American students, 90 percent of who come from poor and single-parent homes.”
“Oscar’s Docs” is a comprehensive screening series of every short subject and feature to win the Academy Award for documentary filmmaking since the category was established in 1941. As per the Academy, the retrospective features “the best available prints – often newly struck or restored editions from the documentary collection of the Academy Film Archive.”
Tickets to each “Oscar’s Docs” screenings are $5 for the general public and $3 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. A limited number of series passes for all remaining evenings are available for $30 for the general public and $25 for Academy members and students with a valid ID. A $5 discount will be given to previous passholders.
The Linwood Dunn Theater is located at 1313 Vine Street in Hollywood. Free parking is available through the entrance on Homewood Avenue (one block north of Fountain Avenue).
For additional information, visit www.oscars.org or call (310) 247-3600.
Academy Award Photo: Courtesy of the Margaret Herrick Library.