Zach Galifianakis film ‘Democracy for Sale’ will be shown at Woodbridge NOVA campus

The film “Democracy for Sale” will be shown at two screenings in Woodbridge.

The film stars comic Zach Galifianakis, a North Carolina native who travels to the state to examine political districts and redistricting. The screenings will take place at the Lakeside Theater at the Woodbridge Campus of the Northern Virginia Community College at 4 and 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2017.

The League of Women Voters in Prince William County first told us about the film showing in Woodbridge, which is one of the multiple screenings for the film across the state. The series of screenings is being made possible, in part, by The Virginia Civic Engagement Table is affiliated with State Voices.

Here’s more in a press release:

A border and barbeque aren’t the only things Virginia and North Carolina have in common. Both states have some of the most gerrymandered districts in the country, have large donations made to legislators by the energy industry and environment advocates, and attempts to legislate voting law changes that make participation very difficult.  A new film called Democracy for Sale features NC native and comedian Zach Galifianakis and focuses on how big money political interests have led to a lack of environmental protection in North Carolina along with tax cuts for the upper class and corporations, education cuts, gerrymandering, and laws designed to decrease voter turnout.

A statewide screening of Democracy for Sale will tour Virginia beginning September 19th. The showings are presented by the Virginia Civic Engagement Table in partnership with Working Films and local organizations throughout the state. Each screening event will be followed by a Q&A regarding issues in Virginia.

While the film focuses on NC as a case study, there are parallels to Virginia issues. Leaders of the film tour hope the screenings will shed light on the similarities and show audiences how to get involved in advocacy for changes. As Elena Langworthy, with Virginia Civic Engagement Table, says about redistricting: “Voters should choose their elected officials, not the other way around. Across Virginia, just like in North Carolina, many citizens don’t have a say in choosing their legislators because the election outcome has already been rigged through gerrymandering.”

The film also documents NC’s ongoing Duke Energy coal ash saga describing how difficult it has been to arrive at a resolution of water and air contamination issues. Dominion Energy in Virginia has been involved in a court case and lengthy negotiations with regulators, environmental protection groups, legislators, local jurisdictions and state leaders regarding major problems with coal ash management such as at Possum Point in Prince William County. Dominion’s controversies on Pipeline construction, Powerline placements, Customer rebates, and large campaign Donations regularly make headlines in Virginia.

The full schedule of film showings is below.

All screenings are free and open to the public. No ticket needed, seating will be given on a first come, first serve basis. Democracy For Sale is part of the EPIX original documentary series “America Divided” docu-series Executive Produced by Common, Norman Lear and Shonda Rhimes. The five-part series features narratives of inequality in education, housing, health care, labor, criminal justice and the political system. Created by Divided Films with support from WK Kellogg Foundation, Just Films Ford Foundation, The JPB Foundation, and Open Society Foundations.