Free screening of ‘I Am’ kicks off Movies on the Lawn series

The Frost Art Museum at Modesto A. Maidique Campus will observe International Day of Peace on Wednesday, Sept. 21, with the museum’s new Movies on the Lawn program.

Tom Shadyac and Desmond Tutu in 'I Am.' Photo: VisionMagazine.com.

To kick off this series of outdoor screenings, the Frost will show I Am, a documentary written, directed and narrated by filmmaker Tom Shadyac. The documentary will be projected on the façade of the Yann Weymouth-designed building, right on Avenue of the Arts (facing the Blue Garage), at 8 p.m.

Admission to Movies on the Lawn is free and open to the public, so grab a blanket and some snacks and enjoy.

The Frost is planning a second screening later this fall and two more in the spring. Stay tuned for details.

Kicking off things…

To make I Am, Shadyac left Hollywood, although his departure had more to do with personal reasons than professional disenchantment: four years ago, a bicycle accident left the successful director of Ace Ventura and Bruce Almighty with post-concussion syndrome.

His symptoms (bad headaches, sensitivity to light) forced him to seclude himself. When his health improved, he minimized his lifestyle, gave away a portion of his fortune, and set out to put the episode in context and on film.

With I Am, Shadyac looked to answer two central questions: “What’s wrong with the world?” and “What can we do about it?” In his quest for answers, he spoke with a number of the world’s most respected thinkers, including philosopher Noam Chomsky, journalist Lynne McTaggart and Desmond Tutu.

“I Am is a fantastic example on how to be a better global citizen. It is the perfect movie to celebrate International Day of Peace and a wonderful example on how to live and embody what it means to be Worlds Ahead,” said Jessica Delgado MS ’06, communications manager for the Frost.