Co-Presented by the Woodstock Public Library + Queerly Inc., & the Woodstock Film Festival.
In Texas, the Krause List targets 850 books focused on race and LGBTQia+ stories – triggering sweeping book bans across the U.S. at an unprecedented rate. As tensions escalate, librarians connect the dots from heated school and library board meetings nationwide to lay bare the underpinnings of extremism fueling the censorship efforts. Despite facing harassment, threats and laws aimed at criminalizing their work – the librarians’ rallying cry for freedom to read is a chilling cautionary tale for all of us.
Following the incredible response to our August 2025 screening, we’re pleased to offer another opportunity to experience this urgent and timely film. Stay after the screening for a post-film panel discussion moderated by Jennifer Brown, award-winning author and DEI thought leader, who will introduce additional special guests.
THE LIBRARIANS, which made its world premiere at Sundance and continued on to SXSW and Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, explores the urgent moment we find ourselves in. As an unprecedented wave of book banning is sparked in Texas, Florida, and beyond, librarians under siege join forces as unlikely defenders fighting for intellectual freedom on the front lines of democracy, flanked by concerned community members and young readers. THE LIBRARIANS is a chilling cautionary tale and rallying cry for freedom – told through the personal experiences of librarians under siege and the everyday patriots who join their ranks in defense of the books.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKER:
Kim A. Snyder is an Academy Award® nominee and Peabody Award-winning Director / Producer whose latest feature, THE LIBRARIANS, premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and will release globally in late 2025. Her Oscar-nominated short DEATH BY NUMBERS, co-created with gun-violence survivor Sam Fuentes, has won multiple awards. Snyder’s acclaimed films include US KIDS (Sundance 2020), LESSONS FROM A SCHOOL SHOOTING (Netflix Original), and NEWTOWN (Sundance 2016, Peabody Award, PBS). Her earlier work includes WELCOME TO SHELBYVILLE (PBS) and I REMEMBER ME (Zeitgeist Films). She also associate produced the Oscar-winning short TREVOR, which spawned The Trevor Project. Snyder holds a Master’s Degree in International Affairs from Johns Hopkins SAIS and lives in New York City.
“Filmmaker Kim A. Snyder’s illuminating documentary — offers a rattling look at coordinated efforts to ban books. More importantly, it introduces viewers to the everyday and increasingly vital heroes pushing back.” — Variety
“Filmmaker Kim A. Snyder’s illuminating documentary — offers a rattling look at coordinated efforts to ban books. More importantly, it introduces viewers to the everyday and increasingly vital heroes pushing back.”