Not So Easy Film Series to screen Almost Sunrise

The Western Illinois Museum is pleased to announce the launch of the Not So Easy Film Series. Documentary films will be screened each month on the first Friday at 7:00 pm and Sunday at 2:00 pm at the Museum.  There is a suggested $5 donation at the door. 

The Not So Easy Film Series has been created for those who have questions that don’t have easy answers. The series includes documentaries that foster discussion and explore topics such as accessibility for the handicapped, veterans returning to civilian life, ethics related to opioids, racial inequality, and ageism.  Community members who have familiarity with the featured topic of the film will be invited to introduce and lead a discussion following the movie. Through the power of cinema, the selected films share another point of view and offer insights about issues that are challenging to understand, elude solutions, or sometimes even to imagine. The films in the series hold the potential to move us to take another step toward a more nuanced understanding of the world around us -even if we still don’t know the answer to those hard questions.

The first film in the series will be Almost Sunrise and will be screened on March 3rd at 7:00 pm and Sunday, March 5th at 2:00 pm. The film is by Michael Collins and Marty Syjuco who document two friends who attempt to put haunting combat experiences behind them on an epic 2,700-mile trek on foot across America. They seek redemption and healing as a way to close the moral chasm opened by war. Almost Sunrise is an intimate film that eschews stereotypes and instead captures an unprecedented portrait of veterans — one of hope, potential and untold possibilities. The screening is held in collaboration with POV, the award-winning independent non-fiction film series on PBS. Visit the POV website at https://www.pbs.org/pov/.

Almost Sunrise includes footage of military combat and might not be suitable for all viewers. The Museum staff recommends watching the film’s trailer and reviewing materials about the film. Suggested materials will be available on the Museum’s website and posted on social media. 

Upcoming films in the Not So Easy Film Series include:

Lives Well Lived: May 5 and 7, 2023, which includes a virtual Q&A with the filmmaker

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed: June 2 and 4, 2023

The Neutral Ground: August 4 and 6, 2023

Storm Lake: October 6 and 8, 2023   

The films scheduled for July and November are films still to be confirmed.  

This program is funded in part by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council. Additional funding was provided by a grant from the Illinois Humanities, with funds from the State of Illinois American Rescue Plan Act.

The Western Illinois Museum is located at 201 S. Lafayette Street, one block south of Macomb’s Courthouse Square. For more information, call the Museum at 309.837.2750, text 309.837.2613, or email info@wimuseum.org. More details and updates can be found on the Museum’s social media channels.

Resources to learn more about moral injury

Trailer and Movie Website
Almost Sunrise – Theatrical Trailer
Movie Website – Almost Sunrise

Articles
NPR Report
Moral Injury Is The ‘Signature Wound’ Of Today’s Veterans: NPR

National Center for PTSD, US Department of Veterans Affairs

Moral Injury, by Sonya B. Norman, Ph.D. and Shira Maguen, Ph.D.
Moral Injury – PTSD: National Center for PTSD.

Video Lectures
What Have We Done?: The Moral Injury of Our Longest Wars by Mr. David Wood