Event

The Devil Came on Horseback

REAL TO REEL: A DOCUMENTARY FILM SERIES SPONSORED BY STUART & GINGER POLISNER

When combat-experienced ex-marine battalion commander Brian Steidle arrived in Sudan to serve as an African-Union cease fire monitor he was greeted with the salutation: "Welcome to Hell." What's happening there? Armed with only a camera, Steidle photographed harrowing images of mutilated bodies, murdered children, and torched villages in Darfur. Later he returned with filmmakers Ricki Stern and Ann Sundberg to take testimony from witnesses who experienced the destructive frenzy of the Sudanese government-supported Janaweed militia who pillage, rape and kill.

It's happening there! Returning to the U.S., Steidle distributed his photos, testified before congress, and did the talk show circuit. At last, President Bush declared the slaughter in Darfur genocide but did virtually nothing to stop it. What's happening here? Steidle, Stern and Sundberg tell the horrific story of the war in Darfur in a clear narrative documented by compelling cinematography. In the end they outline what we can do here to relieve the human suffering and stop the genocide that is happening there. - Marty Haas

USA, 2007, 85 min, color ÃÂ Directors: Ricki Stern and Ann Sundberg

"An Outstanding Film. It's Superb, Period." - Nicholas Kristof, NEW YORK TIMES