Documentary highlights financial struggles for northwest families

Personal stories of NW families struggling to make ends meet & avoid foreclosure highlight the need for community involvement to help Pierce County families struggling to stay in their homes

The following is a press release from the Washington State Office of the Attorney General:

The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) and the Office of Attorney General Bob Ferguson announce the screening of American Winter at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 24 at the Grand Theatre in Tacoma. The documentary, directed by Emmy Award-winning filmmakers Joe and Harry Gantz (Taxicab Confessions, The Defenders), follows the personal stories of eight families struggling in the wake of the economic downturn. Shot over the winter of 2011-12 in Portland, OR, this powerful film reveals the human impact of budget cuts to social services, rising poverty and economic inequality, and the fracturing of the American Dream.

American Winter premiered on HBO in March 2013 and won Best Documentary Award at the Portland International Film Festival. Most recently, American Winter won “Best of the Festival” at the Workers Unite!
Film Festival.

Guests are invited to stay following the film for a reception at Corina Bakery next door to the Grand Cinema, as local experts and co-director Joe Gantz talk about how the themes of American Winter are relevant in our community, and learn more about the resources available in Pierce County to help prevent foreclosure and its consequences.

To reserve your free tickets, call (253) 572-5134 or e-mail vls@tacomaprobono.org for more information.

This screening is brought to Washington by the partners of the Pierce County Foreclosure Prevention Roundtable – including: Seattle University School of Law’s Foreclosure Mediation & Outreach Project, Tacoma-Pierce County Bar Association’s Volunteer Legal Services Program and Home Justice Project, Northwest Justice Project’s Foreclosure Prevention Unit, Washington Attorney General Consumer Protection Division, Washington State Housing Finance Commission, Columbia Legal Services, Associated Ministries, Washington Department of Financial Institutions, Washington Association of Justice, South Sound Outreach, Parkview Services, Pierce County Center for Dispute Resolution, Puget Sound Mediation, and others including housing counselors, mediators, paralegals and attorneys.