On Monday, September 10, the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts brought the film, “Sadie,” to ETSU. The film is centered around the title character, 13-year-old Sadie, who struggles with her changing family dynamic in the absence of her father who is in the service and her sort of denial to the dissolution of her parents’ marriage. Although Sadie does not change much throughout the film, the audience is able to understand the various elements of her persona and what drives her actions through the introduction of other characters and her interactions with them.
The film, which has been a work in progress for some time, brings to light a possible product of a brutal world.
“This is something I’ve been working on since 2009,” said filmmaker Megan Griffiths. “It’s sort of a reflection of all these things I kept reading about and watching in the news and how people were coming of age with all this violence around them and how that might affect their choices, their decision-making and how they saw the line drawn between right and wrong.”
The picture highlights many issues that are common in our present day society but yet are widely overlooked, such as mental health issues in military families and depression and bullying among children and teens.
“We try our best to bring thought-provoking films to campus, and we know that this is one that may hit a little close to home with some of the audience so we encourage film-goers to seek help with whatever issues they may be experiencing,” said Anita DeAngelis, director of the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts.
This is ETSU’s ninth season being part of South Arts’ Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers. This season features six films that are free for students, faculty and the surrounding community. For more information on featured films in the Southern Circuit Tour and other events sponsored by the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts, call 423-439-8587 or visit etsu.edu/martin.
