We are honored to present acclaimed documentarian and FACETS’ 2015 Screen Gems Honoree, Steve James’s Life Itself for our special FACETS 47th Anniversary Celebration screening. Director Steve James will be in attendance for a post-screening Q&A with FACETS Film Program Director Charles Coleman.

Roger Ebert was a long-time friend and champion of FACETS and our founder Milos Stehlik. But more importantly, Roger was an inspiration and ally in the uncompromising belief that film has the power to change lives. As Milos said at Roger’s memorial: “You showed us what movies and life can teach us. We can overcome. We could be passionate about movies because movies are life – and life matters.” 

Steve James (Hoop Dreams) and executive producers Martin Scorsese (Taxi Driver) and Steven Zaillian (Moneyball) present Life Itself, a documentary that recounts the inspiring and entertaining life of world-renowned film critic and social commentator Roger Ebert – a story that is by turns personal, funny, painful, and transcendent. Based on his bestselling memoir of the same name, Life Itself, explores the legacy of Roger Ebert’s life, from his Pulitzer Prize-winning film criticism at the Chicago Sun-Times to becoming one of the most influential cultural voices in America. 

The screening of Life Itself will be preceded by the invitation-only FACETS 47th Anniversary Celebration Open House.