Film premiere: “When the Chevy Breaks (How Small Towns Fix Big Problems)”

The University of Maine at Machias will premiere a new student documentary film, “When the Chevy Breaks (How Small Towns Fix Big Problems)” at 6:30 p.m. April 24 at the Performing Arts Center.

The event is free and open to the public. For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, call 255.1200.

The documentary, filmed last year in Washington County, is the third feature-length production to come out of the Downeast Documentary filmmaking course at UMM, taught by interdisciplinary fine arts faculty member Alan Kryszak.

“When the Chevy Breaks (How Small Towns Fix Big Problems)” tells a collection of stories, from Machias taking on the world’s most powerful Navy (on a Sunday after church), to a father who is an amputee waiting for his son to return from Afghanistan so they can climb Mount Katahdin together.

The stories of persistent people overcoming obstacles, big and small, are set in Downeast coastal Maine, including Eastport, Jonesport, Machias and Kingsfield.

This year’s student filmmakers include Miranda Sutton, Brooke Hachey, Will Rittenhouse, Kayla Cater, Sophie Squire, Eric Darby, Christopher Palmiotto, Trevor Tanski, Jesse Gray, Alex Blackie, Lucas Logan, Abdalla Mostafa, Alexis Morrill and Holly Preston.

The previous year’s documentary filmmaking students were recognized with an Excellence Award at the 2018 Docs Without Borders Film Festival for their documentary about the opioid epidemic in Washington County, “Whatever Works: Exploring Opiate Addiction.”

Click here to watch a preview of this film, and to learn more about UMM’s Downeast Documentary class