1991. Upstate New York. A group of teenage misfits, inspired by a renegade English teacher, embark on a student film project and uncover a vast conspiracy that is poisoning the ground beneath their feet. Banding together to confront the indifferent adults, corrupt politicians and a violent criminal organization threatening their small town, they produce an investigative documentary that causes shockwaves in their community. Teenage Wasteland is a coming-of-age story based on exclusive access to hundreds of hours of candid, humorous and nostalgic video outtakes, and the cooperation of Fred Isseks and his intrepid students as they reckon, thirty years later, with a defining event in their lives and a remarkable story of civic courage.
Join film subject Fred Isseks for a special post-screening discussion.
Fred Isseks was probably the most unconventional teacher at Middletown High School in the 1990s, but also the teacher every student hoped to find on their schedule. His belief that students must learn by doing became central to his PhD thesis on Media Courage, which he completed in 2003 at the prestigious European Graduate School in Switzerland. Since then, Fred has remained dedicated to the cause – monitoring the landfill sites and the Wallkill River, digitizing his records and archival footage of the investigation.
Promotional Partners: Cinema Studies Student Union (CINSSU) and Planet in Focus
TICKETS (+HST)
General: $15
Members: $10, $8, FREE