(845) 353-2568 Contact: Patricia Schneider/Publicist (917) 612-2675 Rivertown Film’s 25th Anniversary Events Continues with A Special Screening of Pioneering Filmmaker John Sayles’ “Men with Guns” June 2026– When the phrase “independent film” is invoked, one of the first filmmakers one thinks of is John Sayles. Sayles is truly a trail blazer in the realm, beginning with his 1980 film “Return of the Secaucus Seven” and continuing with another 17 movies. He is true to his vision, and has been integral to the development of “indie” films. He tells stories that Hollywood doesn’t tell, about people and history that have been overlooked. As part of their continuing 25th Anniversary program, Rivertown Film is presenting a screening of John Sayles’ 1997 film“Men with Guns”on Wednesday, July 8th at the Nyack Center (58 Depew Ave., Nyack). The film centers around a wealthy doctor, Humberto Fuentes, in an unnamed Latin American country who is nearing retirement. As he considers his legacy, he decides to visit his former students whom he has sent to dangerous rural areas to serve indigenous communities. He finds himself confronted for the first time in his life with harsh realities, immersed in a society of violent conflict, where powerless villagers and educated doctors alike are threatened and killed by “men with guns”. As the film ascends to another plane through Fuentes’ journey, it’s vividly rendered, meticulously detailed and features a large cast of indigenous, non-professional actors, many off whom had never seen a film before they acted in this one. Sayles directs this story in Spanish, English, Nahuatl, Tzotzil, Maya, and Kuna, and does it so exactingly. “Men with Guns” was a Golden Globe nominee for “Best Foreign Language Film”. A discussion with John Sayles and Rockland resident, producer/screenwriter Rich Guay follows the film. Guay is a member oof Rivertown’s Creative Advisory Board and the founder, along with his wife, director Nancy Savoca, of the
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