Has Rooftop always screened political and social films? If so, how have you noticed their treatment change over the years -- if at all? In other words, have there been years where the work is predominantly comic, and others when it's more dramatic?

Yes, we've always screened films with political and social themes, and it's always been pretty balanced. I think the biggest change is that we're seeing more of those personal films that we love. Inexpensive, high-quality video has made it possible for people to follow "smaller" stories, and use those to address larger issues. Another film that fits that mold is Trouble the Water, which Rooftop showed on August 6 in Harlem and is now in theaters, a documentary about two people who survived Hurricane Katrina with a video camera in hand, and how their story is representative of so many issues of poverty and racism in America. Their grainy but harrowing footage from the hurricane is the core of a very powerful movie, and years ago I don't think that type of home movie footage could've been the centerpiece of a feature-length documentary that would be seen widely.

What motivates you to screen socially and politically themed work?

At Rooftop, we always we say we don't screen in theaters, we screen in communities. We always try to pair the content of the films with the venue and neighborhood. For example, on September 5, we'll be on the roof of El Museo del Barrio in East Harlem screening Juan Manuel Sepulveda's La Frontera Infinita, a gorgeous documentary exploring the immigration issue through the perspective of immigrants from Central and South America moving through Mexico. When we show a film like that in a neighborhood with such a large population of Mexican and Latino people, where the local community can come out and see their own experience reflected, and where people from outside the area can come and share the experience, it makes seeing the film a truly dynamic event, in which the political issues become even more memorable.

How do your audiences receive such work, compared with the other projects you show?

People seem to really love all the films we show, as we're drawing over 500 attendees per show. And certainly the Q & A sessions with have with filmmakers and documentary subjects are engaging and informative, as people have a lot of comments and questions about these films. I think screening serious films outdoors, in what is a pretty relaxed, fun environment, makes difficult subject matter more palatable, too.

Tell us about the Eastern Effect Equipment Grant.

We try to support independent cinema in a variety of ways, including showing films outdoors, renting out low-cost equipment, and teaching film classes to public school students. We also have what we call the Rooftop Filmmakers' Fund. We set aside $1 from every ticket sold, and $1 from every film submission fee (both of which are just $9), and give it back to alumni filmmakers in the form of grants for their new productions. Over the years, we've funded dozens of films, and this year alone we'll give away over $15,000 in grants, such as to Bill Brown's documentary Cumberland, about the military reservists who were blamed for the Abu Grahib torture, and how America's battered working class came to bare the blame for America's moral failures.

In 2008, we were really pleased to announce a new grant as well, created in partnership with Eastern Effects, a film equipment rental house in Brooklyn. Eastern Effects is a tremendous supporter of independent film, able to handle productions of any size, and are generously donating a full lighting and grip package to one feature-length film for 30 days.

How did you select the recipient?

Dozens of filmmakers, all of whom had screened work at Rooftop previously, submitted proposals and screenplays. A panel of Rooftop Films and Eastern Effects staff and Board read the work, and looked at the filmmakers' previous films. We were looking for quality work and films that showed a unique vision.

The film we selected was Lee Isaac Chung's Lucky Life, about four friends on a poignant road trip. Mark and Karen are preparing for the birth of their first child, while Jason is coping with his recent diagnosis with terminal cancer. A meditation on life, death and spirituality, Chung says the film, which will begin production in September, was inspired by his trips to Spanish cathedrals, and the revelation of "cinema as a medium for creating spiritual space." Lucky Life will be Chung's second feature film, following on the tremendous success of his debut Munyurangabo, a stunning narrative about post-genocide Rwanda, which screened at Rooftop on August 23, and at festivals including Berlin, Toronto, and Cannes, where Variety praised the film as "flat-out, the discovery of this year's Un Certain Regard [section]."

What are some of the highlights from this year's screening's thus far?

On June 12, we hosted the world premiere of Captured (directed by Jenner Furst, Dan Levin and Ben Soloman), a feature-length documentary about Clayton Patterson, a prolific activist videographer who has been documenting the gentrification of the Lower East Side for 30 years. With the screening on the graffiti-covered roof of New Design High School in the heart of the neighborhood the film is about, and with over 1,100 people attended the screening, including former Mayor Ed Koch, it was an astonishing forum for addressing the issues in the area.

Another event we host every year is our 4th of July "Un-American Films" screening, which combines a light-hearted party atmosphere -- free drinks, live music, great fireworks view -- with a collection of witty and weighty political short films that take an intimate look at a variety of issues facing our nation, using artfully-told personal stories and carefully-crafted craziness to address the breadth of the American experience. With over 800 people in attendance every year, it's always a fantastic show.

What screenings do you have coming up that our readers might like to know about?

On September 16, we're hosting a screening in conjunction with IFP of PJ Raval's Trinidad, another film co-funded by Rooftop, a documentary about a town in Colorado which has changed from a conservative coal-mining community into the sex change capital of the world.

Then on September 18, we're hosting a Sneak Preview of Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher's work-in-progress October Country, a lovely and heart-wrenching documentary about the Mosher family in upstate New York, struggling for stability while haunted by the ghosts of war, teen pregnancy, foster care and child abuse. This vibrant and intimate film examines the forces that unsettle the working poor and the violence that lurks beneath the surface of American life.

[Image Credit: Sarah Palmer, courtesy of Rooftop Films]