Film Screening: "Sirena's Gallery" and "Naomi & The Reckoning"

Sirena's Gallery is an independent feature film about a Salvadoran-American woman’s struggle as an art gallery owner after losing her husband to suicide. Sirena must quickly adapt to self-isolation, grief-induced visions, and the virtual world of e-commerce during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Naomi & The Reckoning is an experimental film that follows Naomi, a young woman with a physical deformity. Struggling with body acceptance all her life, Naomi also comes from a strict religious upbringing. Purity culture further complicated her relationship with her body and, now recently married, she can’t find sexual satisfaction. Actress Donna Morales narrates the film.

Actress Amanda Andrews will moderate a Q&A with the director following the screening.

About the director:

​Christine Stoddard is a Salvadoran-American writer and artist creating books, films, murals, and more. She founded Quail Bell Magazine, the Badass Lady-Folk podcast, and Quail Bell Press & Productions. She recently premiered her first feature film, Sirena's Gallery, after directing several shorts, such as Bottled, Virtual Caress, Butterflies, Drunken History, and Brooklyn Burial. Her books include Heaven is a Photograph, Hello, New York: The Living And Dead, Naomi & The Reckoning, Desert Fox by the Sea, Belladonna Magic, and Water for the Cactus Woman, among others. She will be directing her nationally award-winning play, "Mi Abuela, Queen of Nightmares" at the Gene Frankel Theatre in NYC in 2022. Previously, she was the first-ever artist-in-residence at Lenox Hill Neighborhood House in Manhattan and served as an inaugural AnkhLave Arts Alliance artist fellow at the Queens Botanical Garden. Her work has appeared in Ms. Magazine, The Huffington Post, Portland Review, Bustle, and beyond.

About the Q&A host:

Amanda Andrews is an actress, singer, and writer, and is happy to get to host the screening of these courageous films. In addition to performing in films, plays, and cabarets in NYC, Amanda has acted in 2 pieces that she wrote and produced: a short film, and a rock & roll one-woman play. She is currently developing a new one-woman rock & roll play, "Everything's Fine!" set to debut in May. Amanda has a heart that is especially enticed by dogs, volunteering, adventures, yoga, and mental health advocacy. www.AmandaAndrews.net, @amandrews31

About Quail Bell Press & Productions:

Quail Bell Press & Productions is a woman-owned creative studio and the parent of Quail Bell Magazine and various other arts, media & entertainment projects. Founded by writer, artist, and filmmaker Christine Stoddard, Quail Bell is based in Brooklyn, NY. Find out more at QuailBell.com.

EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT: Venmo $10/ticket to the director @artistcstoddard with the memo "Sirena Stuart" to save $5 on admission.

**All tickets must be bought in advance.**