WASHINGTON, July 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- A
pre-Whistleblower Summit & Film
Festival publicity rollout began last night with an
advanced screening of Gavin Hood's
(Eye In The Sky) new film "Official Secrets" which
opens on September 6th in
D.C., at the National Press Club. Special guests included writer
and director Gavin Hood and
real-life inspirations, whistleblower Katharine Gun (portrayed by Keira Knightley) and journalist Martin Bright (portrayed by Matt Smith). "Official Secrets" screened
to a full house with many notable whistleblowers such as
Marcel Reid, Sheila White, Robert J.
Maclean, Dr. Matthew Fogg and
influencers like members of the National Press Club, Government
Accountability Project, Project on Government Oversight and
staffers from various representatives offices on the
hill.
She risked everything to stop an unjust war. Her government
called her a traitor. Based on world-shaking true events,
Official Secrets tells the gripping story of Katharine Gun (Keira
Knightley), a British intelligence specialist whose job
involves routine handling of classified information. Michael
McCray, whistleblower and summit co-host, described Official
Secrets as "a modern day All The President's Men—only
better." Daniel Ellsberg, the famed
whistleblower behind the leak in 1971 of the Pentagon Papers (the
subject of Steven Spielberg's 2017
drama The Post), remarked that Gun's actions signified "the most
important and courageous leak I have ever seen. No one else –
including myself – has ever done what Gun did: tell secret truths
at personal risk, before an imminent war, in time, possibly, to
avert it."
Over the last twelve years members from the Make It Safe
Coalition have arranged an assembly of whistleblowers in
Washington, DC each year for an
annual conference originally known as Washington Whistleblower's
Week. ACORN 8, a Washington,
D.C. based organization will host its eighth annual event,
the Whistleblower Summit & Film Festival on
Capitol Hill on July 29 to August 1,
2019. The theme for the Whistleblower Summit this year is
True North—Persevering in the Pursuit of Justice. The series
of events will take place on Capitol Hill and other nearby
locations
The Whistleblower Summit recognizes that cinema is a powerful
medium for highlighting civil and human rights violations across
the globe. It seeks to shine a light on stories of courage and
perseverance in the face of injustice, and to encourage individuals
to stand together to achieve human rights for all. Marcel Reid, summit co-host and Festival
Director explained, "We are looking for films about whistleblowers,
the First Amendment or that touch on one or several human rights
issues that are connected to our areas of work, this includes
freedom of expression, women's rights, discrimination, communal
violence, human rights defenders. As well as films centered on
other civil and human rights issues."
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SOURCE Whistleblower Summit