TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) - May 23, 2008 Moore announced Thursday that /*Madonna*/, like himself a Michigan
native, will appear for a screening of "I Am Because We Are"
during the Traverse City Film Festival on Aug. 2.
"She's sort of entered my realm," Moore said. "When I saw it,
I thought, 'Wow, it's like she's been making these films for
years."'
Madonna produced and narrated the documentary after traveling to
Malawi, where she met the toddler David Banda. She and husband Guy
Ritchie are adopting the child.
"I Am Because We Are" illustrates the poverty that children of
the southern African country face, how the AIDS crisis is claiming
lives, and the conditions that cause disease and other misery
there. But the film urges people to volunteer and tries to offer
hope.
"She takes the viewer through a very personal journey and tries
to connect us, living here in the U.S., giving us a window into the
way it is for other people in the world," Moore said. "You're
extremely moved when you watch it. You understand very clearly why
she's devoted so much of her life to the people of Malawi."
/*Moore*/ said he was "outraged" by the criticism Madonna received
for her efforts to adopt David. Some children's rights groups said
it would be better to provide more resources so children could
remain in their native countries. Others accused her of using her
celebrity status to circumvent Malawian adoption laws, which she
denied.
"As one who has seen what the yellow press can and does do, all
of that was just one more reminder to me of just how dishonest so
much of the media is in this country," Moore said.
"I am very excited to come to Michigan to show my film,"
Madonna said in an e-mail Friday to The Associated Press. "The
film is a labor of love and I am happy that I can bring it home to
my roots with the help of Michael.
"I am also honored that the film will be screening at this
particular festival arranged by Michael as he is a genius and I am
a huge fan."
Moore, who won the /*Academy Award*/ in 2002 for "Bowling for
Columbine," said he saw an early version of Madonna's film in
London while shooting scenes for his latest documentary, "Sicko."
After watching the finished product about a month ago, he asked
Madonna for permission to screen it during the festival in Traverse
City, his adopted hometown about 250 miles northwest of /*Detroit*/.
Moore established the festival in 2005 with local author Doug
Stanton and photographer John Robert Williams.
"She said she'd be thrilled to come here and be part of the
film festival," Moore said. "We were pleasantly surprised."
Madonna, born in Bay City and raised to the south near Detroit,
recently released a new album, "Hard Candy," and is preparing for
a worldwide tour that begins in August. She'll take a one-day break
from rehearsals to visit Traverse City.
The film will be shown in a downtown theater that seats 540.
After the film is shown, Madonna will take questions from the
audience, Moore said.
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On the Net:
http://www.traversecityfilmfest.org
http://www.iambecauseweare.com
Madonna to show film at Moore's festival
By 6abc
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