Free Owsley Sunday Films: Appalshop at 50: Stranger with a Camera

Stranger with a Camera
Directed by Elizabeth Barret

Sunday, January 27, 1 pm

During the 1960s, filmmakers from around the world came to Appalachia to document the dire conditions of the region’s poorest residents. Media focused the nation’s attention on economic injustice and helped to lead to the declaration of the War on Poverty.

However, the use of the striking images of poverty raised questions about whether media-makers with otherwise good intentions exploited and perpetuated long-held stereotypes of Appalachia.

In 1967, this tension between media and community led to an extreme and tragic response when Eastern Kentuckian Hobart Ison shot and killed Canadian filmmaker Hugh O’Connor, who was in the region to document conditions of poverty.

This Appalshop film, Stranger with a Camera revisits this tragedy by examining the relationship between media-makers and the communities they portray in their work. 2000, U.S., video, 61 minutes. Recommended for 13+.