The More Things Change…
One of my heroes is Frances Willard, crusader of the late 19th century. Her motto was “do everything!” And with that motto in mind the I Know ME program made our first movie. Ms. Willard did not say, “Do everything perfectly” or most of us would never launch into a new project. For us at the I Know ME program “Do everything” means “try everything.”
And so, in the spring of 2022 the I Know ME program went where we had never been before, we made our first movie. Thanks to Ned Lightner of Belfast Community Media, the results are far better than we had any right to expect but if nominated we will not accept the Academy Award. We invite you to join us on July 11 at 6:30 PM in Dreamland at the Colonial Theater in Belfast to see our effort, “The More Things Change.” The film runs approximately one hour and the showing is free with donations accepted. After the film we will be having a brief discussion with the cast and crew about their experiences and reflections on 19thcentury life.
Unlike a feature film or even a TikTok video, the purpose of this film is help kids understand the past and how it relates to the present. The themes are school policy and bullying, topics that never seem to go out of style. The actors and crew members helped shaped the story and create the scenes and dialogue.
We invite you to our world premiere of the film, knowing its weaknesses but also applauding its strengths. For the kids it was an opportunity to create and to reflect on education throughout the ages as well as “living” in 19th century Maine. For the adults it was a memorable time of seeing our vision come to life.
We thank the Penobscot Historical Society for lending us their beautiful re-creation village for our filming.
For more information about “The More Things Change” please call Ray Estabrook at 207-322-3229.