KCRW Partner Screening: ‘Beyond Utopia’

KCRW, Hammer Museum, and Roadside Attractions invite you to a special screening of Beyond Utopia followed by a conversation with director, Madeleine Gavin moderated by KCRW’s Madeleine Brand.

A suspenseful look at the lengths people will go to gain freedom, Beyond Utopia follows various individuals as they attempt to flee North Korea, one of the most oppressive places on Earth, a land they grew up believing was a paradise. At the film’s core is a mother desperate to reunite with the child she was forced to leave behind; a family of five — including small children and an elderly grandmother — embarking on a treacherous journey across the Yalu River and into the hostile mountains of China; and a man of God on a mission to help these desperate souls. Gripping, visceral, and urgent, Madeleine Gavin’s film embeds the viewer with these family members as they attempt their perilous escape, palpably conveying life-or-death stakes.