Gallup Sun

The sixth annual Gallup Film Festival, Sept. 13-15, featured a number of documentaries, as well as feature, student and short films made by local and international filmmakers.

Three entries were selected as featured screenings and are detailed below:

Defending the Fire

The featured documentary that kicked off the film festival on Sept. 13 was Defending the Fire, written by Maura Dhu Studi and directed by David Aubrey. It was produced by Silver Bullet Productions in Santa Fe and narrated by Wes Studi.

“Native American Warriors have navigated a unique cultural and spiritual path, relying on the tenets of the Warrior in ancient and modern warfare,” the company’s site...

With the close of the Toronto and Venice film festivals over the past couple of weeks, it appears the fall movie season has officially arrived. This week, I thought I’d provide a bit of a preview as to what would be hitting cinemas in the next couple months leading up to Thanksgiving. While there is plenty of commercial fare arriving, it’s also the time of year in which a few award season hopefuls begin to appear on the scene.

The first week of October begins with A Star is Born. Believe it or not, the original film was made back in 1937 and remade in 1954 and 1978. This edition stars Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper (who is also making his directorial debut). Cooper plays a...

It’s time for another look at highlights arriving on Blu-ray and DVD. There’s a great mix of releases that include big Hollywood flicks as well as independent fare. So if you can’t make it out to the movies this week, be sure to check out one of these titles!

Big New Releases!

Gotti - This biopic chronicles the rise of mobster John Gotti to the top of the Gambino crime family. It reportedly condenses three decades of his rule, following Gotti as he enforces his rule while attempting to develop and keep bonds with his family members. Reviews for this drama were pretty darn terrible. Some felt it tried to cram too much into the running time, others felt it was miscast...

Stagecoach Elementary Teacher Benina Maldonado is Teacher of the Month

With the 2018 school year in full swing, it’s time once again to recognize another outstanding individual for excellence in teaching.

Each month during the school year, Camille’s Sidewalk Cafe in Gallup recognizes a local teacher as Teacher of the Month. Teachers are nominated by students or those who feel they deserve the recognition for their seemingly effortless, hard work.

Camille’s presents the teacher with an award for excellence in their field.

Kicking off this brand-new school year, Camille’s congratulates Benina Maldonado, their September Teacher of the Month.

Maldonado is a pre-school teacher...