Health care documentar­y in Flat Rock looks to heal a broken system

Dr. Marsha Fretwell addressed a crowd of 25 in blunt terms Monday in Flat Rock: “We need to get for-profit health insurance out of the marketplace.” Fretwell, a former geriatric physician and a member of Healthcare for All Western North Carolina, crystallized the thesis of the documentary Fix It: Health Care at the Tipping Point, which had […]

Rememberin­g the Great Flood of 1916

With the Great Flood’s centennial approaching, filmmaker David Weintraub has produced a documentary, Come Hell or High Water, exploring the catastrophe through descendants’ memories, historical photos and contemporary accounts. Xpress sat down with Weintraub to talk about the film, the flood’s impact on the region and the lessons to be learned.

Local documentar­y “Buskin’ Blues” premieres

by Paul Clark The biggest challenge to making a movie about the busking scene in downtown Asheville, says Erin Derham, was knowing when to stop. New buskers cycled through town all summer, giving the filmmaker endless possibilities to flesh out her story on the subculture these musicians inhabit. Super-organized and deadline-oriented, Derham gave herself six months […]

Beyond Coal: Rally against Duke Energy plant brings out environmen­talists, TV vampire

A few hundred people rallied under clear blue skies in Pack Square Park Saturday afternoon to call on Duke Energy to shutter its Asheville coal plant and advocate for clean energy. The event, called “Beyond Coal: A Rally for Our Future,” featured local speakers, singers and popular TV actor/vampire Ian Somerhalder. [Photo gallery at the bottom.]