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What people who have lived in New Orleans are saying: Still Waiting Life after Katrina is the most moving and heartfelt documentary since Spike Lee’s When the Levees Broke. This documentary did more than narrate a few pictures or take complaints from victims of the storm. It went so much deeper. Still Waiting embraced the Souls of the black people of St. Bernard Parish and brought the stories of these three wonderful women to the homes of families across America. This is my family and I was moved to tears at the struggles my aunts have to endure. I have ordered a copy of Still Waiting to show to other members of my family traveling here next month for a mini family reunion. I will cherish it always and again thank you for your honest and heartfelt depiction of the struggles of those trying to piece their
lives back together again. Thank You for Still Waiting. I grew up in Uptown New Orleans; my family has been there for generations. All those I know still back there have been and still are affected. Your show was very effective in showing how Katrina impacted the soul of those in its path. Everything else around the anniversary focused on the physical damage, but you've showed the real damage. Congratulations and thanks for making "Still Waiting", simultaneously one of the most beautiful, gripping, and terrible things I've ever seen. My wife and I lived in New Orleans from '84-'91, and it crawled under my skin like no place ever has. I've often surprised people by stating that NO was the most family-oriented place I'd ever lived.
I was charmed by the desire of African Americans to return to their homes in Saint Bernard Parish despite their unanswered pleas to the Federal government and their local governing officials in Saint Bernard Parish. It is shameful that this situation exists two years after Katrina when billions of construction dollars are spent in Iraq with little or no accountability. The documentary is wonderful. So many of the issues your subjects raise are so key. The students in the class were stunned by how good it was. (We don't trust the capacity of outsiders to "see" and you and your collaborators do.) …It is the way in which you reveal the personal dilemmas about what to do that for me is so powerful. If there are opportunities to nominate it for a documentary award, please let me know. You have captured the fragility and the resilience of the lives of
one extended family that represent a fraction of the population affected
by Katrina and the aftermath of human and system failures.
The film delivers an intriguing mix of hope and despair in this unique
statement of the greatest American tragedy to date. WOW, this film is wonderful-- moving, rich, powerful, and beautifully told. There should be much much more of this work…Congratulations!! I just watched *Still Waiting,* and I was incredibly moved. I lived in Southern Mississippi for years--taught at the U of Southern Miss until I moved here in '02. I so miss the sense of family and history. I've tried so many times to explain to friends and colleagues here the close ties, the culture of connection, that is so deep in the deep south. It's not about restoring New Orleans; it's about restoring family in the whole flood area. The documentary captures this beautifully. Everybody involved with this program should be so congratulated. I just had tears streaming down my face,. It’s hard to talk about still. IT really affected me. It’s a very powerful film. What an absolutely horrible situation for these people. I learned so much about new Orleans and people, culture, home, heritage. Fantastic. Remarkable movie. Thank you so much. You did an incredible job in shaping representative and inter-connected stories and letting the storytellers present them in their own voices. Such good work! Congratulations. Still Waiting is beautiful! Really really REALLY well done!
What church leaders are saying: The United Methodists and Quakers in Amherst showed Still Waiting as part of further relief organizing. I've coordinated service-learning trips from University of Massachusetts to the Gulf Coast for two years. I’m ordering it so we can use it in the seminars that prepare student teams to return I really can't thank you enough for sharing yourself and your beautiful film with us. All week people have been talking about what a moving experience it was to watch the film together. Your creativity and love and dedication and soul have produced a film that speaks on so many levels; it is rich indeed; it has already begun to transform lives. Many blessings to you as you continue to use your gifts for such good work! I watched your film earlier this week on PBS. It is wonderful. Lots of heart. A group from my church will be traveling to New Orleans later this month for a mission trip to help with the rebuilding. When the mission trip group returns, as chair of the Adult Education Committee, I plan to show your film and thought you might be interested in hearing about the impact it is making. Keep up the good work!
What other professionals are saying: My project team got together last night to watch the documentary and they were really impressed, so was I. Thanks for all you have done to bring a portion of the Katrina experience to the public eye, desperately needed and done in such a powerful way. Congratulations on an amazing film! Your voice is SO powerful! Please continue to encourage people to return to the New Orleans area to participate in the recovery process. After watching Still Waiting Life After Katrina last night I was sad and depressed and affected more than by any movie/program I've seen in the last few years. Thanks for the excellent program! |
