Family Affair
Wednesday, April 20, 2011 – 7:30pm
USA 2009. Director: Chico Colvard
“As a 10-year-old, Chico Colvard accidentally shot his older sister in the leg. This seemingly random act detonated a chain reaction that exposed unspeakable realities and shattered his family. Thirty years later, in his film Family Affair, Colvard ruptures the secrecy and silence again. As he bravely visits his relatives, what unfolds is a highly personal film — uncompromising, raw, and cathartic. Driving the story is Colvard’s sensitive probing of a complex dynamic: the way his three sisters survived severe childhood abuse by their father and, as adults, manage to muster loyalty to him. These unforgettable women paint a picture of their harrowing girlhoods as they resiliently struggle with present-day fallout. The distance time gives them from trauma yields piercing insights about the legacy of abuse, the nature of forgiveness, and eternal longing for family and love. These truths may be difficult to bear, but they reverberate powerfully within each of us” (adapted from C-Line Films). “A haunting, nearly perfect documentary . . . provocative and shocking in the way a piece of non-fiction ought to be. It’s a stunning story that is stunningly told” (Wesley Morris, Boston Globe). “Complex and unsettling . . . A fascinatingly raw study” (Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times). Colour, HDCAM. 80 mins.
Post-screening discussion with Allan Wade, Ph.D, a family therapist, researcher and activist who lives in Cobble Hill on Vancouver Island. Allan teaches widely and co-developed a response-based approach to therapy with victims and perpetrators of violence. His research has focused on social responses to victims and on the connection between violence and language.
Moderated by Dr. Harry Karlinsky, Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia.
Trailer and website