They Killed Sister Dorothy

Narrated by Martin Sheen, this moving documentary tells the story of Sister Dorothy Mae Stang, the 74-year-old Catholic nun from Dayton, Ohio who was shot and left to die in the Amazon rain forest. Dorothy's brother (who calls her “Dot”) and her many friends are trying to find out exactly what happened on that muddy back road in February 2005. Known by some as the “Angel of the Amazon,” Dorothy's crusades to help local residents practice sustainable agriculture — on the same land coveted by loggers — made many people angry. THEY KILLED SISTER DOROTHY is a courtroom drama that follows the trials of Dorothy's killers and examines her life's work in Brazil. Who was this woman? Why was she killed? What will be done about it? The fate of the Brazilian rain forest itself might hang in the balance. Winner of the Audience and Grand Jury Prizes at the 2008 South by Southwest Film Festival, this film was directed by Daniel Junge whose “Iron Ladies of Liberia” was a hit at last year's CIFF and winner of the Greg Gund Memorial Standing Up Film Competition. – B.B.