The Free Speech Society was created in 2016 to facilitate healthy discussion regarding civic and political issues. It’s a non-partisan forum guided by principles of non-confrontational debate, with a focus on listening and discerning – valuing the input of all.
Learn MoreThis screening on Jan 27 is presented in partnership with The Free Speech Society. Stay after the film for a discussion!
Panelists
Dr. Clif Mason is a Bellevue University Professor Emeritus of English and Humanities. He was English Department Chair for twenty years and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences for six. He holds a Ph.D. in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where he specialized in 20th Century British and American literature. He is the author of two full-length poetry collections: KNOCKING THE STARS SENSELESS (Stephen F. Austin State University Press) and AS JAGUARS DREAMED ON THE EARTH’S DARK FACE (a magical realist novel in verse, forthcoming from Cathexis Northwest Press in February 2026). He is also the author of three chapbooks of poetry: SELF-PORTRAITS IN WHICH I DO NOT APPEAR (Finishing Line Press), THE BOOK OF NIGHT AND WAKING (winner of the Cathexis Northwest Press Chapbook Prize), and FROM THE DEAD BEFORE (Lone Willow Press). His work has appeared in Rattle, Southern Poetry Review, The Classical Outlook, Poet Lore, and Orbis International Literary Journal (UK), among many others. One of his poems was selected by Marge Piercy as First Place in the National Category & Grand Prize winner the 2025 Joe Gouveia Outermost Poetry Contest. He is a former Fulbright Fellow to Rwanda, Africa.
Film Information
George Orwell was one of the most radical and visionary authors of the 20th Century, whose 1940s novels, such as 1984 and Animal Farm, foretold a chilling, all-to-believable authoritarian future. Acclaimed director Raoul Peck (I Am Not Your Negro), working in collaboration with the Orwell Estate, seamlessly interweaves historical clips, readings from Orwell's diary, cinematic references, and dynamic modern day footage to craft not only a definitive portrait of the writer himself, but an entirely fresh take on how remarkably relevant and prophetic his work has become.
Peck doesn't just present the information but shows new ways of seeing it, drawing patterns and connections we might not otherwise realize. As terms like "Big Brother" and "Newspeak" become more prevalent and ominous with each passing day, Orwell: 2+2=5 provides a stirring depiction of the dangers of power and the fragility of so-called civilized society, told through the eyes of a man from the past who just might hold the key to the world's future.
Reviews
"Orwell: 2 + 2 = 5 is an urgent, indispensable film for our times." – Deadline
As part of our See Change initiative, we strive to showcase the work of women and non-binary individuals and their behind-the-scenes involvement in a production.
This film is edited by Alexandra Strauss.
Film Stills
