The Adirondack Film Society (AFS) is partnering with the human rights organization John Brown Lives!, the new Adirondack Diversity Initiative, and the Lake Placid Center for the Arts (LPCA), to screen three highly acclaimed films for area students and the general public, March 16-18th.

Two free, daytime screenings of “Hidden Figures,” for area middle and high school students will be held on Thursday and Friday, March 16-17. The movie tells the previously untold story of the indispensable contributions made by three female African-American scientists — referred to then quite literally as human “computers” — to NASA and the U.S. space program around the time of John Glenn’s planned orbit of Earth. Schools in the region were invited directly, and both screenings are near-capacity.

On Friday, March 17, as part of the ongoing AFS Screening Series at LPCA, Version 3.0, the collaborating groups will present the Oscar-nominated documentary “13th” in which director Ava DuVernay (“Selma”) takes viewers from the passage of the U.S. Constitution’s 13th Amendment following the Civil War to the modern era of mass incarceration.

Then on Saturday, March 18, filmgoers will be treated to the region’s first public screening of the drama “Jackie,” a look into one of the most tragic moments in American history, seen through the eyes of the iconic First Lady — Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy — played by Best Actress Oscar-Nominee Natalie Portman.

Both programs start at 7 pm. The screening of “13th” is a free program, and tickets to “Jackie” are $7, available at the door as well as by advance reservation via the LPCA box office (518) 523-2512, or by visiting their website.

A few remaining seats may still be available for small school groups and homeschooled students and their parents. To learn more, contact AFS Operations Manager, Fred Balzac at (518) 523-3456 or fredbalzac@aol.com.

Photo: 13th poster, courtesy Netflix.