Events

8th Annual Human Rights Film Festival » The Response Film Screening and Panel Discussion

Thursday, September 30, 2010 | 7pm-9pm 
Hergenhan Auditorium | Newhouse III | map 

Pre-screening Panel

Moderator: » William C. Banks, Director of the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism 
Panelists: 
» Sig Libowitz, Writer and Producer of The Response
» Gabor Rona, International Legal Director,  Human Rights First
» CAPT Brendon Gilbert, Judge Advocate, U.S. Army 

Film Screening: The Response

Shortlisted for the 2010 Academy Awards®, The Response is a highly acclaimed courtroom drama based on actual transcripts from the Guantanamo Bay military tribunals (also known as the Combatant Status Review Tribunals).  In the 30-minute short film, three military officers must decide the fate of a Middle Eastern detainee (played by Aasif Mandvi, actor, comedian, and “correspondent” for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart).  The judges—and the audience—decide whether the detainee is an enemy combatant, guilty of material support to al Qaeda and the deaths of U.S. soldiers, or an innocent victim, as he claims.  The judges have access to classified evidence and the identity of the accuser(s)—the detainee knows neither.  The government has argued that to release such classified information may assist terrorists and compromise U.S. national security. 

The film, written and produced by Sig Libowitz while attending law school at the University of Maryland, reflects actual Guantanamo Bay military tribunal proceedings.  Michael Greenberger, a professor at the University of Maryland, consulted for the film in his capacity as a former Justice Department counterterrorism official, and students and faculty at the school assisted in the production of the film.  The film was directed by Adam Rodgers and also stars Kate Mulgrew (Captain Janeway of Star Trek: Voyager) and Peter Riegert (Animal House, The Sopranos, The Good Wife).  Libowitz is a practicing attorney at Venable LLP in Washington, D.C., and has a background as a movie studio executive, producer, and actor, including recurring roles on the Sopranos and Law & Order. The film received the Audience Award at the Politics on Film festival in Washington, D.C., the 2009 ABA Silver Gavel Award for Drama & Literature from the American Bar Association, and a Special Jury Prize at the DC Shorts Festival.

Post-Screening Panel

Moderator: 
» David M. Crane, Professor of Practice, Syracuse University College of Law
Panelists: 
» Mallika Dutt, CEO and President of Breakthrough: Bring human rights home
» William C. Banks, Director of the Institute for National Security and Counterterrorism 
» Peter Riegert, Actor 
» CAPT Brendon Gilbert, Judge Advocate, U.S. Army

Watch the Trailer

 Map

Links

» For more events in the Syracuse Symposium Series, visit: http://syracusesymposium.org/
» For the complete schedule of the Human Rights Film Festival, visit  http://syracusesymposium.org/
» For more information on The Response Movie and additional film screenings in your area, visit http://www.theresponsemovie.com/ 

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