The Society for Arts presents International Documentary films at Chopin Main Stage. Tickets www.chicagodocfestival.org/purchase/ticketselect.asp

4:00pm Lesson From Bam– Alireza Ghanie (Farsi). In 2003, a devastating earthquake in Bam, Iran killed over 68,000 people and destroyed the city’s ancient mud-brick citadel. Children speak of it.

7:00pm La Sierra – Scott Dalton & M. Martinez (Spanish). In La Sierra a neighborhood of Medellin, Colombia, over the course of a year, the filmmakers follow the lives of 3 young people, their experiences of war, death and love.

1:15pm Peppers & Nudes Photographer Ed Weston -Joachim Haupt. A captivating portrait of photographer Edward Weston whose works became icons of the modern age and influenced generations of photographers.

9:45pm Mission Accomplished Helmut Grosse (German). As debates over exact motives and justification of US invasion of Iraq continues, this film documents how access to Iraqi oil, and GWB US policy to secure Iraqi terrain in the future were war starting reasons.

10:45pm Torture in the name of Freedom – J. Armbruster, A. Stauth (German). Posits a post 9/11 American society in which the majority of the people believe torture is a right if it serves to protect the US against further attacks.

8:00pm The Liberace of Baghad – Sean McAllister in person. The filmmaker spends 8 months with Iraq’s most famous pianist, Samir Peter, who is reduced to playing in a hotel bar and watching chaos unfold.

1:00pm The Gates – Albert Maysles in person. Documents the installation of 7500 gateways covered in flying saffron fabric in NYC’s Central Park..

1:30pm Handheld from the Heart -A. Maysles in person. A self-portrait in the director’s own words and images with conversations between himself and people who have been most important to his personal and professional life

3:00pm Reel Paradise – Steve James in person. Influential indie film personality Steve James takes his family to Fiji for a year and operates the world’s most remote cinemas.

5:15pm The Innocents – Lauri Feldman in person. People exonerated from death row in the U.S. tell their stories.

8:45pm Three of Hearts – Susan Kaplan in person. (French & English). Portrait of 2 men and 1 woman who’ve fallen in love and formed a life-long commitment; a love story like none you’ve ever seen.

3:45pm Call it democracty – Matt Kohn in person. An illuminating, non-partisan look at the long standing need to address issues including voter’s rights and election reform.

8:30pm Mad Hot Ballroom – Marilyn Agrelo. An inspiring look into the lives of 11 yo NYC public school kids as they journey into the world of ballroom dancing revealing pieces of themselves and their world.

6:00pm The Men who would Conquer China – Nick Torrens & Mart Bakal in person (Chinese & English). Mart Bakal, millionaire NY investment banker and Vincent Lee successful Hong Kong entrepreneur, represent different values and motivations in the quest to break into the Chinese market.

10:00pm Children of the Decree – Florian Lepan (Romanian & English). Story of the Romanian baby boom generation willed into being by dictator Nicolae Ceausescu when he issued a decree forbidding abortion.

9:45pm Fallen Angel: Gram Parsons – Gandulf Hennig in person. A fascinating biopic blending performance footage and contemporary interviews to reevaluate the man and his place in the development of popular music.

4:00pm Orphans of Nkandla – B. Woods & D. Shipley (Zulu & English). The AIDS pandemic has orphaned nearly 75,000 children in South Africa alone. In Zululand children care for their dying parents with few means.

10:00pm The Life & Times of Frida Kahlo – Amy Stechler (Spanish & English). Chronicle of the life and art of the great Mexican painter; showing her relation to the historical and cultural influences that inspired her and defined the first half of the 20th century.

4:pm Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea – Chris Metzler in person. Squatters, nudists, retirees, and barflies all speak their piece about the resort/mistake/ecological nightmare that is man-made lake.

7:00pm Hitler’s Hit Parade – O. Axer and S. Benze (German). Uses a brilliant collage of materials (home movies, archival footage, animated and educational films, commercials and political propaganda) to express the false idealism that characterized the Nazi’s rise to power.

11:50pm Fighting for a Life in the Death Belt – J. Marks & A Elend. Considers the controversial institution of capital punishment in America through the eyes of Stephen Bright, the nation’s leading anti-death penalty lawyer.

3:00pm Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea – Chris Metzler in person. Squatters, nudists, retirees, and barflies all speak their piece about the resort/mistake/ecological nightmare that is man-made lake.

6:pm Phantom Limb – Jay Rosenblatt. The phenomenon of phantom limb syndrome is used as a metaphor to explore filmmaker’s feelings about the death of his young brother 40 years ago.

10:15pm Waking up Dead – Fabio Jafet in person. Following veteran rock drummer Phil Varone in his quest for rock stardom. Director Jafet explores how the vagaries of the alternative, underground and heavy metal worlds conspire to destroy the families, careers and the very lives of many musicians.

6:00pm No Gray Twilight – Richard & Kathryn Bucher. Several cowboys prepare for their rodeo events.

8:30pm A Life without Pain – Melody Gilbert in person. Exploration into day-to-day lives of three children suffering from a rare genetic defect; they literally feel no pain.