| I Grew Up In Princeton | |
|---|---|
| Directed by | Brad Mays |
| Produced by | Lorenda Starfelt |
| Starring | Lee Neuwirth, Sydney Neuwirth,Arnold Roth, Phil McPherson, Charles Roth, Rett Campbell, Elizabeth Carpenter, Susan Tenney, David Schankler,Jimmy Tarlau, Zachary Tumin |
| Cinematography | Brad Mays, Rebecca Burr, Sam Freund |
| Edited by | Brad Mays |
| Music by | Jon Negus |
Release date |
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Running time | 125 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
I Grew Up in Princeton is an independent documentary film directed byBrad Mays, and produced byLorenda Starfelt at LightSong Films in North Hollywood, California.[1] The film had its festival debut at the New Jersey International Film Festival on June 14, 2014[2] and was followed by another screening at the Philadelphia Independent Film Festival on June 28, 2014.[3]
The Princeton newspaper Town Topics describesI Grew Up in Princeton as a "deeply personal 'coming-of-age story' that yields perspective on the role of perception in a town that was split racially, economically and sociologically",[4] is a portrayal of life in the venerable university town during the tumultuous period of the late sixties through the early seventies. Featuring interviews with over 60 current and former Princetonians, as well as archival footage,I Grew Up in Princeton exposes Princeton as a town with, according to Joyce J. Persico of theTrenton Times, "two realities. On the one hand, blacks were accepted in society; on the other, they were accepted as long as they stayed on their 'side' of town."[1] Racial divisions are explored in considerable depth. Former Superintendent of the Princeton Regional School District, Dr. Philip McPherson, describes the disturbing backlash resulting from his support of the teaching ofJames Baldwin's playBlues for Mr. Charlie in Princeton High School English classes. Ms. Persico describes a scene from the film in which Dr. McPherson discusses returning home from a particularly contentious meeting with a group of Teamsters to find "a racial epithet scrawled across his driveway."[1]
The numerous interviewees featured inI Grew Up in Princeton include cartoonistArnold Roth, famed artistNelson Shanks, author Zachary Tumin (formerly of Harvard'sJohn F. Kennedy School of Government), formerSuperintendent of Princeton Regional Schools Phil McPherson, and former director of theInstitute for Defense Analyses (IDA)Lee Neuwirth, who speaks in considerable detail about the 1970 anti war demonstration which occurred on IDA grounds. According to writer Linda Arntzenius in an article for Princeton publicationTown Topics, IDA was "thought to be in cahoots with the United States military war machine, plotting bombing routes inCambodia."[4] Also featured in the on-camera discussions regarding Princeton student war protest areJimmy Tarlau and David Schankler, both former members ofStudents For A Democratic Society (SDS), whose views of the IDA demonstrations clearly differ from Neuwirth's. While the film sheds considerable light on IDA, as well as other long-standing controversies regarding the Princeton community, a final historical resolution proves elusive.[5]
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