Statewide Screenings Announced for Vermont Filmmaker’s Production of "Just Getting By"
"Just Getting By" takes an intimate look at the lives of Vermonters struggling with food and housing insecurity. The film will tour Vermont from March 22-April 12 and is sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont.
Berlin, Vermont — Just Getting By, a new documentary film by Bess O’Brien that takes an intimate look at the lives of Vermonters struggling with food and housing insecurity, will tour Vermont from March 22-April 12th, sponsored by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. The screenings will include an audience discussion with the director after the show.
“Vermont has the second highest rate of homeless people in the United States, right after California. One third of Vermonters struggle to put food on the table,” says director Bess O’Brien. “These are big issues for a small state. Just Getting By focuses on these issues in the lives of everyday people.”
The film tells the stories of working families who are struggling with the high cost of living in Vermont, as well as those who are homeless and accessing food shelves and soup kitchens, and people who are living in temporary hotel and motel programs. In addition, Just Getting By zeros in on Native people creating innovative farming practices, and those in our communities who are providing housing, food security and social services to their fellow Vermonters in need.
“Vermonters are struggling with food and housing insecurity at rates our communities have never before seen. This has an indelible impact on the mental and physical health of individuals and families,” says Megan Peek, director of Community Relations & Health Promotion at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont. “Bess O’Brien is a master at pulling light toward the often overlooked corners of our society, and giving a voice to those lived experiences.”
Just Getting By screenings will be held around the state between March 22 and April 6:
- Burlington: Main Street Landing Arts Ctr, March 22
- Burlington: Main Street Landing Arts Ctr, March 23
- St. Albans: Welden Theater, March 26
- St. Johnsbury: Catamount Arts, March 28
- St. Johnsbury: Catamount Arts, March 29
- Middlebury: Town Hall Theater, March 30
- Brattleboro: Latchis Theater, March 31
- Greensboro: Highland Center for the Arts, April 4
- Morrisville: Centennial Library, April 5
- Rutland: Rutland Free Library, April 6
For more information, to purchase tickets in advance, and for discounts on tickets, visit Kingdom County Productions.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is a local, not-for-profit health plan. For over 40 years, the company has been enhancing the health and well-being of the Vermonters we serve by offering innovative plans to individuals, older Vermonters, and businesses. Our employees are dedicated to developing new ways to support high-quality care, programs, and events that promote wellness.
