The S.B. County Action Network (aka SBCAN. Get it? SBCannes!) is hosting a new film series that screens popular movies with underlying themes of social justice and then follows the flick with an open conversation between our town’s political and cultural heavyweights. Here’s why you should check out the next one on Monday, August 20, at 7 p.m., at the Metro 4. A $10 donation is suggested.
1) The film: Resurrecting the Champ, by Rod Lurie (director of The Contender), stars Samuel L. Jackson as a homeless man who tells a sportswriter (played by Josh Hartnett) that he was once world champ.
2) The topic: Homelessness continues to be a visible and tragic problem on the streets of otherwise sunny Santa Barbara.
3) The talkers: City councilwoman Helene Schneider, Housing Authority director Rob Pearson, Casa Esperanza director Mike Foley, Sheriff Bill Brown, and John Buttny, who’s working on the county’s 10-year plan to end homelessness, will sit on the post-movie panel.
4) The cause: Proceeds will be split between the progressive SBCAN and the Community Housing Corporation. The Primo Boxing Club, which works with at-risk youth, may also become involved.