Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News
An Oscar front-runner focused on the lives of local workers is returning to the big screen here.
Neon movies manager Jonathan McNeal has announced that “American Factory,” directed by Yellow Springs residents Julia Reichert and Steve Bognar, will be shown at 12:30 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 17 to 19.
The movie is located at 130 E. Fifth St. in downtown Dayton.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday that the film is nominated for an Academy Award in the documentary category.
President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company, Higher Ground, in partnership with Netflix, acquired “American Factory” in April.
The film is streaming on Netflix.
It follows the creation of the Chinese-owned automotive glass-factory Fuyao Glass America in the same building that had once housed a General Motors assembly operation in Moraine.
Bognar and Reichert, a couple for more than 30 years, received an Academy Award nomination in the “Best Documentary (short subject)” category for their 2009 HBO film “The Last Truck” about the closing of that very same GM plant in Moraine.
McNeal praised Reichert and Bognar when reached Monday.
“This nomination is icing on the cake. We already knew that Steve, Julia and their team had created one of the best and most powerful films of the year — and we’re so proud and lucky to know them as active members of the community as well as great friends and mentors,” he said. “The arts and arts education are alive and well in Dayton. That said, we must remind educators and the community how important the arts are to a well-rounded education. Often the first thing to be cut from a budget, we know that the arts are quite important to a overall quality education, and can also help with grasping the fundamentals.”
