MIDDLETOWN
SCREENING TIMES & TICKETS:
Dirs. Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss | Documentary | U.S.A | 2025 | 1 hr. 35 min.
Followed by a discussion with film subject Fred Isseks
Garbage, Gangsters, and Greed—that was the title of the film a group of Middletown High School students, in upstate New York, made in the early 1990s. Inspired by their teacher, Fred Isseks, they uncovered a conspiracy that was poisoning their community, and armed only with camcorders, filmed it. Controversy ensued. Thirty years later, this new documentary revisits the transformative experience. Fresh from Sundance, and by the directors of the Emmy-winning Girls State and Boys State, it attests not only to the influence of educators, but also the power of curiosity coupled with persistence and courage.
ABOUT THE DIRECTORS
Amanda McBaine’s directing work includes Girls State, Boys State (winner of the 2020 Sundance Grand Jury Prize), and The Mission, with Jesse Moss. She produced The Overnighters, winner of the Sundance Special Jury Prize, and Mayor Pete and The Bandit. She won Primetime Emmy awards for Girls State (directing) and Boys State (Outstanding Documentary). She is a Directors Guild of America (DGA) nominee for Boys State and has twice been shortlisted for the Academy Award for Feature Documentary.
Jesse Moss’s directing work includes Girls State and Boys State (winner of the 2020 Sundance Grand Jury Prize), both with Amanda McBaine, War Game (with Tony Gerber), The Overnighters (winner of the Sundance Special Jury Prize), The Mission, and Mayor Pete. He won Primetime Emmy awards for Girls State (directing) and Boys State (Outstanding Documentary). He has twice been nominated by the Directors Guild of America (DGA) for his work, and twice shortlisted for the Academy Award for Feature Documentary.
Tickets for these screenings are general-admission and pay-what-you-can. The suggested ticket price is $20. If you can pay more, we greatly appreciate it!