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Tag: Atlanta City Hall

  • City Council, APS School Board Candidates Speak on Forum Ahead of Election Day

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    Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice

    The Poised Peaches, an official interest group of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority (AKA), held a candidates’ forum for the City of Atlanta elections at The Cascade United Methodist Church in Midtown on Monday. The forum featured candidates confirmed for Atlanta Board of Education District 8 At-Large, Atlanta City Hall Council President, Atlanta City Hall Post 1 At-Large, and Atlanta City Hall District 2.  

    The forum took place during the last week of early voting for the general municipal election, with the final day being Friday, Oct. 31. Election Day is Nov. 4, and some of the races are predicted to go to a runoff election, which is scheduled for Dec. 2.

    Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice

    Atlanta City Hall District 2 candidates in attendance included Kelsea Bond, Alex Bevel Jones, and Courtney Smith. Michael Julian Bond and Matthew Rinker were the Atlanta City Hall Post 1 At-Large candidates in attendance. The forum’s APS School Board candidates included Kaycee Brock, Royce Mann, and Aisha Stith. The forum ended with a discussion with Atlanta City Hall council president candidates Rohit Malhotra and Marci Collier Overstreet. 

    Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice

    The forum began with a question to District 2 candidates on the unhoused community in Atlanta, specifically the encampments on Freedom Parkway and the Downtown Connector. Candidates touched on the impact of the incoming World Cup games and incidents surrounding people such as Cornelius Taylor, who was killed after a city front loader ran over his tent while clearing out a homeless encampment. 

    “Prioritize people first, over the tourism industry, over development interests. I think we need more of a strategic system because right now, many of our shelters are highly restrictive. They’re concentrated in specific geographic regions. We need a more compassionate approach,” Kelsea Bond said. “We need wrap-around services that work for people, not profit.”

    Photo by Tabius McCoy/The Atlanta Voice

    Several candidates said their main committee focus was transportation and emphasized the importance of more reliable public transportation, including bike lanes, bus access, rapid bus lines, and addressing potholes. Candidates across all four panels also touched on policies needed to achieve making Atlanta the No. 1 place to raise a child, climate resilience, energy costs and housing affordability, as well as extending the tax allocation district, addressing childcare costs, students with special needs, accountability, and public policy to maintain diversity in the city.

    I would like to see something around literacy that includes more than just anyone who has a child in APS schools,” Kaycee Brock said. “We do need community right now around the students.”

    The night ended with a call to action for Atlanta residents to go out and vote, noting that only 15% of the community voted in the last general election. To learn more about the candidates, visit ballotpedia.org and stay up to date with reporting on The Atlanta Voice.

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    Laura Nwogu

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  • Bronze Lens Film Festival celebrates 15th anniversary with 140 films from 59 countries

    Bronze Lens Film Festival celebrates 15th anniversary with 140 films from 59 countries

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    The first year of the Bronze Lens Film Festival had a modest start of presenting 23 films. Now a decade and a half later, the Atlanta-based festival will present over 140 films from 59 countries including the USA, the United Kingdom, Nigeria, Spain, Canada, Tobago, Trinidad, and the Netherlands. 

    For the first time the festival will showcase at the Tara Atlanta Theater, 2345 Cheshire Bridge RD NE in Atlanta, August 21 – 25.  

    Among that diverse array of films will be 48 world premieres. Twenty-eight of the films were produced in Georgia. From modest beginnings to Bronze Lens has become one of the premiere showcases for independent filmmakers of colors. Along the way, the festival has become a qualifying festival for Oscar nominated shorts. 

    Founder and Executive Producer Kathleen Bertrand said each year it’s becoming more and more difficult for the Bronze Lens staff and judges to reduce down the large entries of films. 

    “You want those films that have scored highest with the judges, but when everybody is scoring the highest it becomes a very difficult process, “ Bertrand said during the festival’s kick-off reception. “ I take my hat to Deidre McDonald (Creative Director) and her team for selecting the most excellent films you will get to see over five days”. 

    The films are produced or directed by well known members of the legal, film and entertainment industries, Bertrand said. Among those of note: Jamie Foxx is a producer for the film “Unhappy Things;” Civil Rights Attorney Ben Crump is a producer of the documentary “How To Sue The Klan” and “The Waterboys”; Jamie Lee Curtis is a producer of “Burnout”; Debra Riley Draper is co-director of RATIFY; Three films will be screened by The Horne Brothers including insightful documentary done in cooperation with The Atlanta Journal Constitution “ The South Got Something To Say”; and Morris Chestnut is a producer of the film “Origin”.

    “We love seeing those that made it come back and invest in those that are trying to make it,” Bertrand said.  

    In addition to the informative panels which will be held during the day, two new components will be held. On Friday night, Bronze Lens After Dark will debut at the UpTown Comedy Club hosted by comedian/actor Jonathan Slocumb. The next night, Atlanta City Hall will be the site of the Inaugural Filmmakers Sneakers Ball. Bertrand said all of the filmmakers who have ever presented at Bronze Lens are invited. 

    The panels are once again designed to aid the filmmaker navigate the many obstacles that hinder many independent films from getting made. Some of those include: “iPhone Magic: Turn Your Phone Into a Storyteller’s Toolkit”; “Crowdfunding to Build Independence”; “Seal the Deal: The Greenlight Blueprint”; “Beyond the Screen: How Tech is Transforming Storytelling”; “Made in Georgia: Cultivating a Thriving Film Community”; “Acting: Respect Tha’ D*#n Craft”; “Podcast Power: How to Engage and Grow Your Audience” and “Preventing Legal Nightmares in Indie Filmmaking.” 

    The festival will wrap on Sunday with the usual Cinema and Social Justice Sunday screening at the Tara. The festival will end Sunday evening with the awards program at the Ray Charles Performing Arts Center at Morehouse College. 

    (For a more detailed schedule go to: www.bronzelens.com)

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    Stan Washington

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