In the fall of 1979, one of history's most ingenious and courageous flights to freedom took place when two families fled from Communist East Germany to the West in their own handcrafted hot air balloon. Professor Gary Flemming will give a short cultural and historical context to the film and at the end there will be time for Q&A. Runtime 1 hour 47 minutes.

By examining the dramatization of history by the film industry, the Real to Reel program seeks to set the record straight by comparing Hollywood’s sensationalized version with the historically accepted interpretations of events.

While Reel to Real events are complimentary, preregistration is required.