WASHINGTON, D.C. (Dec. 4, 2019) – A screening of the new fictional film “Sequestrada” will be held at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Dec. 9, followed by an in-depth discussion about the construction of the Belo Monte Dam in Brazil and the resulting real-life environmental and societal consequences.
The construction of the Belo Monte dam in the Brazilian Amazon has received significant criticism for its impact on the rainforest and its effect on the indigenous tribes who live in the region. “Sequestrada” captures the dam’s fallout in a story that focuses on an indigenous tribe called the Arara. In the film, a young girl and her father leave the tribe to join a protest about dam’s construction. Their lives intersect with those of a bureaucrat responsible for a report on the dam and an American investor in the project. The New York Times featured “Sequestrada,” which will be available on-demand on Dec. 17, in its 2019 holiday movies guide.
The film is produced, co-directed and co-written by Sabrina McCormick, PhD, an associate professor of environmental and occupational health at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health. Through filmmaking, McCormick delves into her expertise of how massive development in the Amazon and the resulting deforestation is contributing to climate change and has destroyed the Arara’s traditional way of life.
After the film screening, McCormick and co-director Soopum Sohn, an associate professor at Long Island University, will host a Q-and-A discussion about the impact of the dam and similar projects in the Brazilian Amazon. The Q-and-A will be moderated by Melissa Stevens, executive director of the Milken Institute Center for Strategic Philanthropy.
Learn more about “Sequestrada” and watch the trailer here. Click here to listen to McCormick discuss the film on the latest episode of Milken Institute SPH's podcast, Healthy You.
EVENT: Screening of “Sequestrada”
WHEN: Monday, Dec. 9, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
WHERE: SD-106 Dirksen Senate Office Building
50 Constitution Ave NE, Washington, DC 20002
MEDIA: The event is free, but reporters must register here and in addition contact Kathy Fackelmann, 202-994-8354, [email protected] or Mina Radman, 202-486-2529, [email protected].