Independent Lens
When I Close My Eyes
Master oil painter Samir Khurshid lives and works in Portland, Oregon, creating densely layered images that capture the dichotomies prevalent in his own immigrant experiences.
Heaven Touches Brooklyn in July
A look at one of the most enduring Italian folk traditions in America — the 110-year-old “Dance of the Giglio” celebration.
- Series
- PBS Plus Presentation
- Premiere Date
- October 1, 2002
- Length
- 60 minutes
- Funding Initiative
- Open Call
Producer
Tony DeNonno
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The Film
Imagine 125 men carrying a five-ton, five-story, hand-sculpted tower and a 12-piece brass band — on their shoulders — dancing them through their neighborhood in tempo to joyous Italian folk songs! For 300 years in Italy, and the past century in communities throughout the greater New York area, this glorious ritual known as “The Dance of Giglio” has been celebrated each summer with unbridled passion and devotion. This annual 65-foot-high moving monument to faith, folk-art, and family honors a Roman Catholic Saint Paolino and his heroic act of sacrifice in the ancient Italian city of Nola in the year 409 A.D.
Eighteen years in the making and lovingly edited from more than 140O hours of footage, Heaven Touches Brooklyn in July is narrated by world-renowned actors John Turturro (Barton Fink, Illuminata) and Michael Badalucco (Emmy Award-winning star of ABC’s The Practice).
