“Two Spirits,” a documentary film by director Lydia Nibley will celebrate its California premier at the 25th Santa Barbara International Film Festival on Saturday, Feb. 6 at 7:30 p.m. This groundbreaking new film has been nominated by the Fund for Santa Barbara for the “Social Justice Award for Documentary Film,” and explores how a shift in cultural values led to the hate-crime murder of Navajo teen Fred Martinez. The film debuted at the Starz Denver Film Festival on Nov. 21, 2009, and will receive two screenings in Santa Barbara.
According to ancient Navajo tradition, sixteen-year-old Fred Martinez had a special gift. He was two-spirit; someone whose nature balanced the feminine and the masculine, and who represented harmony within the individual, the family, the culture, and the natural world. By interweaving the tragic story of a mother’s loss of her son with an examination of a time when many Native American cultures held places of honor for people of integrated genders, the film “Two Spirits” offers a fresh take on the perception of sexuality and gender in American culture today.
WHAT:
“Two Spirits”, a nominee by the Fund for Santa Barbara for the “Social Justice Award for Documentary Film” makes its California debut at the 25th Santa Barbara International Film Festival.
WHEN:Saturday, Feb. 6th at 7:00 p.m.
Santa Barbara Museum of Art (1130 State St.)
Second Screening: Monday, Feb. 8th at 3:30 p.m. (Victoria Hall Theater, 33 West Victoria St.)
WHO:Lydia Nibley, Director, Co-Writer, Co-producer
Russell Martin, Co-Writer, Producer
Darrin Navarro, Editor
David A. Armstrong, Director of Photography
TICKETS: Tickets can be purchased on-line at http://sbiff.org/main/for-attendees/ticketing/