Member Screening Series: Women of 69: Unboxed and An American Quilt: Stitching Together Our 9/11 Memories

Join us for this month’s NYWIFT Member Screening Series showcasing the films Women of ‘69: Unboxed (Debbie Abrahamson, Associate Producer); and the short doc An American Quilt: Stitching Together Our 9/11 Memories, by Roz Sohnen (Director, Producer, Narrator, Co-Writer), Lynn Cassaniti (Editor, Co-Writer), and Barbara Meyer (Associate Producer). The filmmakers will be available for a Q&A immediately following the screening.

The screening series provides members with the opportunity to show their work in a theatrical setting. Screenings take place at Anthology Film Archives, followed by networking at a nearby bar.

Women of ‘69: Unboxed (pictured above)
(Dir. Peter Barton)
Debbie Abrahamson (Associate Producer)
2014, 59min

A group of women, college classmates, who were both electrified and pummeled by the turbulent surf of the 60s, look back, then ahead, as they turn 65, ruminate on their heartaches and triumphs, and evaluate the “dowry” they’ll leave for future generations. If their parents were the Greatest Generation, perhaps this generation was the Loudest. They changed the world, at least in their fevered dreams, and the world changed them. Meanwhile, time has had its way with them…

Debbie Abrahamson (writer, producer, and director) received her MFA in film production from the University of Southern California. Her thesis film, The Void, was nominated to represent USC for the national Princess Grace award and screened in film festivals worldwide. Since moving to New York, Debbie has made The Goldfish, which has screened in numerous international film festivals. She is also the associate producer of the award winning documentary film Women Of ’69: Unboxed, which screened at various film festivals and on several PBS stations. Debbie has recently completed a feature length animation script, Ariana, and is currently developing a second animation project.

An American Quilt: Stitching Together Our 9/11 Memories
Roz Sohnen (Director, Producer, Narrator, Co-Writer)
Lynn Cassaniti (Editor, Co-Writer)
Barbara Meyer (Associate Producer)
2016, 33min

An American Quilt: Stitching Together Our 9/11 Memories tells the stories of seven families, among the many, who lost loved ones on 9/11 and dealt with their grief by creating memorial quilt panels. The painstaking process of choosing what to put on the quilts, coupled with a mixture of humor and sorrow, culminates when we see all 65 quilt panels displayed in Central Park and then in Washington, DC. Included are interviews with Jan Seidler Ramirez, Chief Curator of the National September 11th Memorial & Museum, and Dr. Gail Saltz, psychiatrist who explains how creating art helps in the healing process.

Roz Sohnen began her filmmaking career with her award winning narrative short, Pink, which is in distribution through Phoenix Films. She has produced and directed, edited, written, and researched numerous film and video projects over the last 25 years. She also taught filmmaking at the Art Institute of NYC for ten years. As a member of NYWIFT since 1990, she proudly joined the Archive Committee where she co-produced the semi annual interviews. Sohnen holds an MFA from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, where she was honored with the Paulette Goddard Scholarship and received the Judge’s Special Merit Award for Directing.