Pandora's Box Film and Speaker Series Breaks Open

Celebrating its fifth year of provocative programming at HCC’s Katy Campus, Pandora’s Box Film and Speaker Series begins with a political pitch from Judge Joe and ends its documentaries with a humorous look a consumerism: What Would Jesus Buy?  In all, nineteen events including eleven films, seven speakers, and one panel discussion examine current political, social, and cultural issues. 

In addition to the Democratic challenger for U.S. Congressional District X, Larry Joe Doherty, also known from his former television show Texas Justice as Judge Joe, Libertarian challenger Matt Finkel will speak on Oct. 21, and we are hopeful that Republican incumbent Michael McCaul will agree to discuss his positions before students as well.  U of H’s Dr. Richard Murray, a regional expert on polling, will speak about election predictions based on statistics, and two films, Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore? and Uncounted, look at the difficulties of entering politics and at tracing ballot fraud. 

Other speakers include UT’s Director of Science of Sustainability, Dr. Shere Abbot on “The Buzz and Biz of Sustaining Our Planet”; oil executive Bert Coxe answering the question “Why Am I Paying $3.50 a Gallon and What Can I do about It?”; independent producer, Michael McKinley of Vancouver, on “The Challenge of Filming Religious Topics in the Middle East”; and humorist and personal safety expert Austin Davis, who will address issues such as stalkers in “Laughing in the Face of Danger.”

Other documentary films include You only Live Twice: Virtual Reality Meets Real World in Second Life, which grapples with overlapping in-world/real-world issues in the cyber site Second Life; Power of Forgiveness, an examination of the psychological and physical effects of forgiveness on individuals and within relationships; and Big Time Losers, the story of six athletes and the price colleges and athletes pay when sports become big business.  More films in the program include Blood and Oil, Cocalero, Taxi to the Dark Side, and Bhutan.

Rounding out the program will be a panel discussion following the film Fighting Goliath: The Texas Coal Wars, which follows the story of Texans fighting a high-stakes battle for clean air. The panel consists of participants in the power plant fight: Eric Mayer, Lawyer; Elena Marks, Mayor White’s Office; and ranchers Robert and Jo Cervenka.

Faculty and staff introduce the events, lead discussions, and provide handouts for further information.   Almost all showings take place at 12:30 p.m. every Tuesday and Wednesday in the Cyber Lounge at the Katy Campus of HCC NW, 1550 Foxlake Drive, Houston, TX 77084.  Students, faculty, staff, and the public are encouraged to participate in the series which is a Continuing Education Program. To learn more about the films, speakers, dates, times, and the program visit our website and blog at http://commons.nwc.hccs.edu/pandora/

For more information call 713-718-5750 or email michael.ronan@hccs.edu.