Documentary Series Unveils Spring 2013 Lineup

The Port Jefferson Documentary Series unveiled the lineup for its spring 2013 festival recently, which will cover topics ranging from sex abuse in the Catholic church, racial stereotypes, Holocaust survivors and more.

The film series boasts as its tagline, "Come for the movie, stay for the talk," and last fall hosted Academy Award nominee Kirby Dick, who wrote and directed "The Invisible War," which tackles sexual assault in the American military.

This year's series kicks off on March 4 with "Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God," a film by Oscar-winner Alex Gibney which explores sexual abuse in the Catholic church. Producers Jedd and Todd Wider will be on hand to discuss the film afterward.

Perhaps the most well known name when the word 'documentary' comes up, a Ken Burns film – directed in concert with David McMahon and Sarah Burns – is scheduled for March 11. The film, "The Central Park Five," follows the trial of five wrongly accused black and Latino teenagers in New York City, a storyline not too different from the West Memphis Three. Co-director McMahon, as well as several of the accused men, will be on hand for questions.

On March 18, Janet Tobias' "No Place on Earth" will be shown at Theatre Three, where the film series' first four shows will be seen, all starting at 7 p.m. This documentary looks at the longest reported period of underground survival in human history: during World War II, in caves underneath the Ukranian earth. Tobias, a former producer for 60 Minutes, will discuss the film after it is shown.

The next three films focus on three drastically different individuals. April 15's show highlights fashion legend Diana Vreeland in "Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel." On April 22 at the Charles B. Wang Center at Stony Brook University, Chinese activist and artist Ai Weiwei is featured by filmmaker Alison Klayman, in "Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry." The following week, at Theatre Three, "The Imposter" delves into the mystery of a boy who goes missing and returns three years later — or at least someone returns.

Finally, on May 6, the film series returns to Stony Brook University with "Seeking Asian Female," which explores the experiences of a California man looking for an Asian wife online, and how the expectations of him, his wife, and the filmmaker all change throughout the process.