Bushra Azzouz was an Iraqi-born experimental filmmaker who directed documentaries and mentored students for two decades at the Northwest Film Center's School of Film. When she died in 2019, her colleagues Ellen Thomas and Enie Vaisburd took up her unfinished project A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Prison.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream in Prison is set at the Two Rivers Correctional Institution near Umatilla, where Open Road Executive Director Johnny Stallings had been working with prison residents for thirteen years, leading dialogue groups and directing theatrical productions.
Ellen, Enie, and Johnny join S.W. Conser to share the gratification of finally completing Bushra Azzouz's vision. The world premiere of the finished film is scheduled for August 7th, 2022, at Portland's Cinema 21, where former Two Rivers residents will join Ellen, Enie, and Johnny in a discussion of their experiences.
- KBOO