Abigail Disney, the grand-daughter of Roy O. Disney and grand-niece of Walt, is a community activist, filmmaker, and philanthropist who uses her grand-uncle’s medium to make movies with a message. She’s produced documentaries before, but “The Armor of Light” is the first film she’s directed.
“Armor” tracks the growing movement among evangelical ministers who question if being pro-gun is consistent with the value the church places on life. The powerful film has been showing in film festivals and smaller screenings since it premiered at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival. But soon it will be available to a much wider audience.
On Tuesday May 10th, “The Armor of Light” will show on the PBS show “Independent Lens.” PBS is also hosting a series of local screenings around the nation.
Movie Synopsis:
What price conscience? “The Armor of Light” follows an Evangelical minister and the mother of a teenage shooting victim who ask, is it possible to be both pro-gun and pro-life?
In Abigail Disney’s directorial debut, Evangelical minister Reverend Rob Schenck—an anti-abortion activist and fixture on the political far right—breaks with orthodoxy by questioning whether being pro-gun is consistent with being pro-life. Lucy McBath is the mother of Jordan Davis, an unarmed teenager murdered in Florida, the victim of “Stand Your Ground” laws. Lucy is trying to make sense of her devastating loss while using her grief to effect some kind of viable and effective political action.
“Armor” follows these unlikely allies through their trials of conscience, heartbreak and rejection, as they bravely attempt to make others consider America’s gun culture through a moral lens. The film is also a courageous look at our fractured political culture, and an assertion that it is, indeed, possible for people to come together across deep party lines to find common ground.
Tackling gun violence in America is an important change that has to happen to make progress forward. It’s great to see a member of the Disney family take this issue on in a way that will help bridge the divide rather than scorch it.
(photo credit: Eva Anisko)