By Sheldon Spackman

Gritty homelessness documentary to be shown at the Mustard Seed

Jun 16, 2018 | 12:02 PM

An experimental documentary film about homelessness will have a special showing and audience Q & A with the film maker at the Mustard Seed in Red Deer next week.

‘Subtext “Real Stories”’ is described as a gritty, graphic and powerful documentary that spans 18 years of looking at homelessness and housing from the standpoints of activists, homeless persons and service providers.   

It begins with an exploration of the demise of Toronto’s Tent City and follows some of its former residents on their journey through early rent-supplement programs and how they adapted to mainstream residency.

The film also looks at Dignity Village, the first sanctioned ‘shantytown’ in US history and one that has become a model for which new, tiny-home communities have been built by homeless groups in both the US and Canada.

Filmmaker and sociologist Eric Weissman PH.D., presented a sneak peak of his film at the 7 Cities Conference held in Red Deer recently and it was said to have a major impact on the audience, leaving dozens of questions unanswered due to time constraints.

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Weissman will now show his film on Thursday, June 21 at 6:00 p.m. at the Mustard Seed in Red Deer and will engage the audience with a Question and Answer period following the film’s viewing to also speak of his first-hand knowledge of urban micro housing.

Those who attend are encouraged to bring a $2 donation to buy one child’s lunch this summer provided by The Mustard Seed.