Doc Salon: DARWIN (Nick Brandestini, 2011)

Event Date: October 24, 2011 - 7:30pm

Location: The James Bridges Theater, Melnitz Hall 1409, UCLA

DARWIN is a documentary film about an isolated community at the end of a weathered road in Death Valley, California. Propelled from society by tragic turns, the people of Darwin (population 35) must now find ways to coexist in a place without government, a church, jobs, or children. The near ghost town's survival depends on the fragile, gravity-fed waterline that descends from the mountains where top-secret weapons are being tested. The film tells the story of a uniquely American place and yet a place that is unique even within America.

Curated by Marina Goldovskaya and presented by the Documentary Salon, featuring a post-show Q&A with Writer/Co-Producer Taylor Segrest & Co-Producer Sandra Ruch.

Best Documentary, Zurich Film Festival
Special Jury Mention, DocAviv International Film Festival
Audience Award, Sonoma International Film Festival
Artistic Vision Award, Big Sky Film Festival
Official Selection, Santa Barbara International Film Festival
Official Selection, Austin Film Festival
Official Selection, Ojai Film Festival
Official Selection, BFI London Film Festival

"DARWIN is a beautiful, elegiac work with unexpected impact and meaning." -Kevin Thomas, Los Angeles Times

"...undeniable poetry...affectionately documented" -Peter Debruge, Variety

"We can only marvel at their candor when faced with Nick Brandestini's camera..." - Jeanette Catsoulis, The New York Times

"Atmospheric...captivating." -Eric Monder, Film Journal

"Exquisite... The stuff that used to comprise novels... Recommended." -Ernest Hardy, Village Voice

DIRECTOR: Nick Brandestini
86 min.

Darwin - Trailer from Darwin Documentary on Vimeo.