Vinfen’s 5th Annual Moving Images Film Festival
April 4th, 2012
Panelists from the film Rebirth: (L-R) Tanya Villenueuva Tepper, Tim Brown, Ling Young and Project Rebirth’s Donna Gaffney and Caitlin Olson. 
More than 300 people attend Vinfen’s 5th Annual Moving Images Film Festival at the Joseph B. Martin Conference Center on Saturday, March 31. Moving Images is held each year to educate our community and fight stigma often associated with people living with disabilities. The theme of this year’s festival was Life After Trauma; the hidden power of hope and healing. Two powerful films were screened, Wartorn 1861-2010 and Rebirth.
Wartorn 1861-2010 Synopsis:
Civil war doctors called it hysteria, melancholia and insanity. During World War I it was known as shell-shock and by World War II, it became known as combat fatigue. Today it is clinically known as post traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD), a crippling anxiety that results from exposure to life-threatening situations such as combat. With suicide rates among active men and women who serve in the military and veterans on the rise, Wartorn 1861-2010 brings attention to the invisible wounds of war. The documentary, produced by James Gandolfini, chronicles the lingering effects of combat stress and post-traumatic stress on military personnel and their families throughout American history, from the Civil War through today’s conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Following the film, there was a powerful speaking and Q&A session which included moderator Cheryl Poppe, Undersecretary of Veteran’s Affairs, Commonwealth of MA and National Guard Veteran; panelists: Moe Armstrong, NAMI Board Member, Founder “Vet to Vet”; Kevin Lambert, Director of Special Populations Outreach, Veteran’s Affairs, Commonwealth of MA; Tom Hannon, Clinical Advisor to the SAVE Team (Suicide Prevention Initiative), Veteran’s Affairs, Commonwealth of MA.
Rebirth Synopsis:
Premiering at Sundance Film Festival, this compelling documentary is the result of a decade long process by director Jim Whitaker and is a riveting journey into living history. From early 2002 through 2009, the Rebirth film crew chronicled the lives of five people directly affected by 9/11.
Following the screening of Rebirth, participants from the film and of the organization Project Rebirth spoke about their experiences making the film and discussed how they healed through hope and support. Particpants included Ling Young, a survivor from an impact floor of the South Tower of the World Trade Center; Tim Brown, a firefighter who survived the collapse of the WTC but lost his best friend; Tanya Villenueva Tepper, a young woman who lost her fiancé; Cailtin Olson, Executive Director of Project Rebirth and moderator Donna Gaffney of Project Rebirth.
Click here to view photos of the 5th Annual Moving Images Film Festival.