[101] MTSU international film series tells stories from Egypt, China, Burma

MURFREESBORO — A gripping story of a woman using social media to chronicle turmoil in her native Egypt is the first of three offerings in MTSU’s International Documentary Series for the fall 2013 semester.

The 2012 film “Words of Witness” will be shown at 7 p.m. today, Sept. 11, in Room 103 of the John Bragg Mass Communication Building. This event is free and open to the public.

In “Words of Witness,” 22-year-old Heba Afify uses tweets, texts and online posts to defy cultural norms and report on the waning days of President Hosni Mubarak’s regime.

Another 2012 documentary, “Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry,” will be shown Wednesday, Oct. 9. This film follows an internationally renowned Chinese artist and activist and his clashes with the Chinese government.

On Wednesday, Nov. 13, the presentation will be “Burma VJ.” This 2008 documentary tells the story of the Democratic Voice of Burma, a collection of young video journalists, who filmed protests and smuggled the footage into Thailand. Their story is part of the battle of a free and democratic Burma, now known as Myanmar.

All documentaries in the series are free and open to the public. All three will be presented at 7 p.m. in Room 103 of the John Bragg Mass Communication Building.

The MTSU International Documentary Series is sponsored by the Office of International Affairs and organized by the Global Studies Program.

For more information, contact International Affairs at 615-898-2116 or international@mtsu.edu or Global Studies at 615-494-7744 or mtglobal@mtsu.edu.