Cornell Cinema premieres three documentaries this September

Cornell Cinema welcomes two documentary makers and presents three new documentaries in September. All screenings are in Willard Straight Theatre, and admission is $4.50 general/$4 students and seniors.

The new documentary "Down From the Mountain" gathers together the musicians who perform on the hit soundtrack to the Coen Brothers' film "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" "Down From the Mountain" will be shown Friday, Sept. 7, at 9:40 p.m.; Saturday, Sept. 8, at 7:15 p.m.; and Tuesday, Sept. 11, at 7:15 p.m., all screenings in Willard Straight Theatre.

If you liked the soundtrack to "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" you'll love "Down From the Mountain." Cornell Cinema presents the Ithaca premiere of the documentary, an exhilarating, foot-stomping film of a concert that took place in Nashville last spring, in which all the artists on the soundtrack came together to play music from the film. Performers include The Cox Family, The Fairfield Four, Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch and John Hartford. Veteran documentarians D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus capture the two-day extravaganza of country, blues, bluegrass, folk and gospel music, as well as backstage preparations and rehearsals. "Down From the Mountain" will be shown Friday, Sept. 7, at 9:40 p.m.; Saturday, Sept. 8, at 7:15 p.m.; and Tuesday, Sept. 11, at 7:15 p.m.

Cornell alumna Liz Mermin returns to campus to present the Ithaca premiere of the documentary "On Hostile Ground," which she co-directed with Jenny Raskin. Mermin introduces the film on Thursday, Sept. 27, at 7:15 p.m.

Political debates about abortion tend to put the issue in stark and even abstract moral terms, but each day health-care providers across the country are forced to make real choices about their beliefs, their practices and their personal safety. "On Hostile Ground" visits three individuals who endure physical and verbal threats to provide abortions. The film does not attempt to provide a complete picture of the abortion controversy; instead, it examines the dedication of its subjects and "smoothly intertwines the three stories and builds to an emotionally satisfying conclusion," said The New York Times.

Cornell Cinema, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Resource Center and the LGBT Coalition welcome filmmaker Tom Shepard at the Ithaca premiere of "Scout's Honor" on Friday, Sept. 28, at 7:15 p.m. Co-winner of the Audience Award for Documentary Feature at the 2001 Sundance Film Festival, "Scout's Honor" looks at the controversy surrounding the anti-homosexual policies of the Boy Scouts of America.

Shepard focuses on two Petaluma, Calif., heterosexual members of the organization who are protesting its stance: Steven Cozza, a 12-year-old eagle scout, and Dave Rice, a 69-year-old scoutmaster banned from his duties because of his views. The two co-founded the organization Scouting for All, dedicated to upholding what they believe to be the true ideals of the scouts: fairness, inclusiveness and honor.