Panel + Conversation
Abigail Disney
As a filmmaker and an activist, Abigail Disney is known for much more than her family name. In their conversation, author Jonathan Alter asks Disney about her background, her first documentary film “Pray the Devil Back to Hell” (2008) and her most recent one “Armor of Light” (2015). Evangelical minister Robert Schenck, a main character in “Armor of Light”, also joins their discussion.
Recorded Saturday, May 9, 2015 at Audible Lounge
In Conversation is presented by
- Abigail Disney had an early interest in film but says, as a female, she was not invited into her family's business. She discusses her doctorate studies on American war novels and her non-profit work. She also tells Jonathan Alter how she came to realize that women's issues are the key to lifting communities.
- Jonathan Alter asks Abigail Disney about her first documentary "Pray the Devil Back to Hell". The film focuses on a female-led Librarian protest; she discusses the movement, her concern that female achievements are often forgotten and her decision to preserve the story in film.
- Abigail Disney tells Jonathan Alter that her goal for "Armor of Light" was to create a more open dialogue on gun control. She discusses how the film brings together a mother whose son was killed by a gun and an evangelical minister who explores the paradox between pro-life and pro-gun agendas.
- Evangelical minister Robert Schenck of "Armor of Light" joins Abigail Disney and Jonathan Alter to reflect on why he agreed to engage in Disney's project and his evolving perspective on guns. Schenck also discusses American Evangelicalism's history with pacifism and gun culture.