Submitted by the Friday Harbor Film Festival

“Bluefin”

John Hopkins, director of “Bluefin,” is attending the Friday Harbor Film Festival and doing a Q & A. He says, ”It looks to be just a great festival. I heard many good things about it from my screening in Salts Spring Island Fest. And I think my doc has an important message to share and insights to those who care about the sea and its wildlife and our precarious relationship to this cycle of life. I would like to speak about how we are socialized to really not understand what happens in our oceans. And why it is so difficult really look deeper into we can’t see, being covered in water.”

Bluefin has been nominated for Best Feature Documentary out of 7,500 international submissions in all categories. For more information, visit www.fhff.org/portfolio/bluefin.

“A Good American”

“A Good American,” has been nominated as best documentary feature at multiple film festivals, including festivals in Palm Springs, Cleveland, and Nashville. An eye-opening and deeply disturbing documentary, “A Good American” tells the complete story of a groundbreaking, very sophisticated surveillance program – known as “ThinThread” — that was intended to gather data capable of providing clues, in real time, of potential terrorist threats. Diane Roark, who formally worked with the NSA, is attending to speak about “A Good American” per the director’s suggestion. For more information, visit www.fhff.org/portfolio/a-good-american.

“Resilience”

“Resilience” dives into the science of Adverse Childhood Experiences and the birth of a new movement to treat and prevent toxic stress. Now understood to be one of the leading causes of everything from heart disease and cancer to substance abuse and depression, extremely stressful experiences in childhood can alter brain development and have lifelong effects on health and behavior. With the help of SJ County Mental Health Department and other mental health professionals, we should be able to have a meaningful panel discussion after both screenings of this important film. For more information, visit www.fhff.org/portfolio/resilience.

“San Juan Island”

Michael Stosic’s music video for his song “San Juan Island,” filmed and produced by Tom Cogan, will be a part of the FHFF this year. His song “San Juan Island” was released around the United States and Canada on July 25 and is on the Adult Contemporary Top 10 streaming chart created by Daily Play MPE.