You are invited to the exciting new documentary recently screened at TIFF and Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema, followed by a discussion with the film's director Astra Taylor.

Coming at a moment of profound political and social crisis, this urgent film connects the past and the present, the emotional and the intellectual, the personal and the political, in order to provoke and inspire.

What Is Democracy? reflects on a word we too often take for granted. Director Astra Taylor’s idiosyncratic, philosophical journey spans millennia and continents: from ancient Athens’ groundbreaking experiment in self-government to capitalism’s roots in medieval Italy; from modern-day Greece grappling with financial collapse and a mounting refugee crisis to the United States reckoning with its racist past and the growing gap between rich and poor.

Featuring a diverse cast—including celebrated theorists, trauma surgeons, activists, factory workers, asylum seekers, and former prime ministers—this urgent film connects the past and the present, the emotional and the intellectual, the personal and the political, in order to provoke and inspire. If we want to live in democracy, we must first ask what the word 'Democracy' even means.

From Astra Taylor, the director of Zizek! and Examined Life!

Discussants:
– Astra Taylor, the Director of What is Democracy?, Zizek! and Examined Life!
– Lea Marin, the NFB Producer of What is Democracy?
– Craig Scott, Professor of Law, Osgoode Hall Law School of York University, Former Toronto-Danforth NDP MP

Thursday, Jan. 24, 7:00 pm
(Doors open at 6:45)

Trailer: https://www.facebook.com/What.Is.Democracy.Documentary/videos/741965392823210/

Presented at The Redwood
(formerly The Centre of Gravity)
1300 Gerrard St. E Toronto, On., M4L 1Y7
(just east of Greenwood)

Screening is FREE. But donations are graciously accepted.