PORT ANGELES — Documentary filmmaker Sonya Rosario travels with a sofa. For her and for those who are seated upon it, this Victorian settee is both a refuge and a symbol of personal connection.
Rosario, who lives in Meridian, Idaho, is driving — sofa on board — to Port Angeles to take part in a series of programs starting today at Peninsula College.
The activist, writer and film director’s events are all free and open to the public, with the first five to be held on the Port Angeles campus, 1502 E. Lauridsen Blvd.
A sixth event comes Friday to the college’s Forks site at 481 S. Forks Ave.
The itinerary goes like this:
■ Rosario gives a poetry reading at 12:35 p.m. today at the Peninsula College Longhouse in Port Angeles.
■ A screening of her film, “Idaho’s Forgotten War,” and an introduction to her documentary in progress, “The Sofa Diaries,” are set for 7 tonight in the college’s Maier Hall.
■ Rosario discusses her filmmaking philosophy in a public Stadium Generale lecture at 12:35 p.m. Thursday in the Little Theater.
■ An open mic and reception with Rosario follows from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the Longhouse.
She plans to bring her sofa in; students are invited to sign up to read at the open mic and meet with the filmmaker to discuss their creative projects.
■ Another screening of “Idaho’s Forgotten War” will start at 10:20 a.m. Friday at the Longhouse.
■ The movie will be shown at 7 p.m. Friday at Peninsula College’s Forks site.
“Idaho’s Forgotten War” is the story of the Kootenai people and one woman, Amy Trice, who declared war on the U.S. government in response to the intense poverty in her community.
Rosario was just 13 when Trice waged her war in 1974.
When she found her voice as a filmmaker, Rosario set out to tell the woman’s story.
She’s been speaking up for women ever since.
It was Rosario’s mother, the late Gloria Reyes, who set for her an example of feminine strength.
One day, mother and daughter were seated on their sofa when Reyes made a revelation: She could no longer stay in her marriage. After 36 years, she would divorce Rosario’s father.
After her explanation, “we agreed to divorce the old way of thinking,” Rosario said, “and look forward to the future.”
These days, she travels across the Northwest with the sofa, which is named Gloria after her mother.
She photographs women sitting together, and hopes to release her film, “The Sofa Diaries,” in early 2016.
In her documentaries and in her writing, Rosario sets out to explore how people find community.
When we share our stories, she believes, we see what we have in common.
A Texan by birth, Rosario also finds inspiration in her adopted home state of Idaho.
The women there “are incredibly powerful,” she said.
“They are adventurous and passionate about the outdoors,” and in this rural state, they learn how to fend for themselves.
Rosario found Peninsula College through professor Helen Lovejoy, who saw her speak at the 2013 Students of Color Conference in Yakima.
“She is a truly dynamic individual,” said Lovejoy, who’s worked for months to bring Rosario here.
For information about Rosario’s events, contact Lovejoy at hlovejoy@pencol.edu or 360-417-6362.
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Features Editor Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5062, or at diane.urbani@peninsuladailynews.com.
