Student organizations and course instructors at Elon University often show documentaries to supplement classroom discussion and raise awareness. But for voluntary screenings, attendance fluctuates from full houses to empty seats.

It’s hit or miss, according to Mandy Gallagher, assistant professor of communications and coordinator of the women's and gender studies program.

“Last semester we showed ‘Miss Representation’ before it was on (the Oprah Winfrey Network), and more than 125 people came,” Gallagher said. “But we’ve also had screenings with only a couple dozen people. It depends on the topic and how well it’s promoted, but I think having student groups on this campus that care about important issues helps.”

Gallagher said the success of “Miss Representation,” which challenged the media portrayals of women and girls, stemmed from interest, as well as marketing strategy.

But according to Gallagher, the modernity of the topic doesn’t factor into this plan. On March 6, the women’s and gender studies program offered a screening of “Standing On My Sisters’ Shoulders,” a firsthand look into the lives of civil rights heroines in Mississippi.

“Even if it’s something that happened 40 years ago, it still matters,” Gallagher said. “While it was a different time period, (documentaries) still bring up issues that are relevant today.”

Junior Katherine Salerno, co-president of Elon’s chapter of Invisible Children, recently coordinated a screening of “7-Fifty,” a documentary that follows a young woman during the controversial 2007 elections in Kenya.

“It’s not so much about entertaining,” Salerno said. “They don’t focus on the commercial aspects, but about how the audience will respond.”

Salerno said she believes documentaries have the ability to communicate the truth about significant issues.

[quote](Documentaries) don’t focus on the commercial aspects, but about how the audience will respond. -- Katherine Salerno, co-president of Invisible Children at Elon[/quote]

Lynn Huber, associate professor of religious studies, agreed documentaries often deliver important messages about current events.

“It gives students the opportunity to empathize with a character and interpret something for themselves,” Huber said.

Just as “Standing On My Sisters’ Shoulders” paralleled current events, Huber said she sees documentaries as powerful tools for drawing connections and initiating dialogue about societal issues.

“(The same-sex marriage documentary) ‘Question One’ is very similar to what’s happening in North Carolina,” Huber said. “But one of the things that struck me was that it saw beyond the issue into the human experience.”

The union between a film’s plot and the reality of the human experience is what makes documentary screenings valuable, according to Gallagher.

“I think documentaries are useful because it’s an educational setting,” Gallagher said. “The topics they address connect with audiences because they’re real people and real issues — issues that affect people at Elon and elsewhere.”

For many, documentaries serve as a catalyst for reflection.

“Documentaries allow students to make their own decisions, which is something we always want students at Elon to do,” Huber said.