Caz libraryThe Cazenovia Public Library, in collaboration with the Alzheimer’s Association, will present The Genius of Marian (2013) Thursday, Nov. 3, at 6:30 p.m., in the Community Room. The film will be followed by a presentation by Katrina Kapustay, Associate Program Director at Alzheimer’s Association, Central New York Chapter. This event is made possible by the Friends of the Cazenovia Public Library.

An Official Selection for the 2013 Tribeca Film Festival, The Genius of Marian is a documentary film directed by Banker White and produced and co-directed by his wife, Anna Fitch. The poignant film centers on Banker’s mother, Pam White, a remarkable woman who was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease at the age of sixty-one.

In 2008, Pam began writing a book, entitled The Genius of Marian, as a tribute to her mother, the painter Marian Williams Steele, who died in 2001 from Alzheimer’s. Just a year after starting the book, Pam received her own diagnosis. As she began to struggle with the project, Banker offered assistance by filming their conversations.

Borrowing the title of his mother’s unfinished work, Banker and his wife went on to create a work of art that documents Pam’s illness and the family’s efforts to come to terms with the realities of Alzheimer’s. On a deeper level, explains Banker, the film is “a meditation on the meaning of family, the power of art and the beautiful and painful ways we cope with illness and loss.”

The Alzheimer’s Association, Central New York Chapter was founded in 1982 and became affiliated by the national Alzheimer’s Association in 1983. Its mission is “to eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research; to provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and to reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health” (www.alz.org/centralnewyork/).

The Genius of Marian is rated PG and runs 85 minutes.

All events at the Cazenovia Public Library are free and open to the public. For more information, call 315.655.9322 or visit www.cazenoviapubliclibrary.org.

By martha

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