In Transit
D: Albert Maysles, Lynn True, David Usui, Nelson Walker III, Benjamin Wu | 76 min | Regional Premiere
A journey into the hearts and minds of everyday passengers aboard Amtrak’s Empire Builder, the busiest long-distance train route in America. Captured in the tradition of Direct Cinema, the film unfolds as a series of interconnected vignettes, ranging from overheard conversations to moments of deep intimacy, in which passengers share their fears, hopes, and dreams. In the space between stations, where ‘real life’ is suspended, we are swept into a fleeting community that transcends normal barriers, and where a peculiar atmosphere of contemplation and community develops. To some passengers, the train is flight and salvation to others it is reckoning and loss. But for all, it is a place for personal reflection and connecting with others they may otherwise never know.
Winner Special Jury Mention and World Documentary Competition Selection Tribeca FF, Official Selection AFI Docs, Vancouver International
We dedicate this screening to the memory of Albert Maysles
Attending: co-director Lynn True