Thursday , October 15 2026

Leo Sopicki

Writer, photographer, graphic artist and technologist. I focus my creative efforts on celebrating the American virtues of self-reliance, individual initiative, volunteerism, tolerance and a healthy suspicion of power and authority.

Anthem FilmFest: Top 10 Libertarian Films Rock with Jennifer Lawrence, Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman

“When I grow up, I want to be Dr. Manhattan," was one of the responses Anthem Film Festival organizer Jo Ann Skousen received during the “Top 10 Films Every Libertarian Should Know” panel. Sometimes you get more than you ask for. After the audience joined the panel in suggesting films, well, there were a lot more than 10.

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Anthem FilmFest: Putting People Back Together

At the Anthem Film Festival, part of the libertarian FreedomFest conference July 8-11, 2015, at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, I was discussing films with a young woman who commented, “I like documentaries, but so many of them are so depressing. I want to see positive stories.” She was in the …

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Anthem FilmFest: Plato, Revolting, and Mendocino – All in a Cave

Ancient Greek philosopher Plato put in a couple of appearances at the Anthem Film Festival in Las Vegas, July 8-11. Two of the short films showed influence, if not direct inspiration, by Plato's tale of the cave, written 2,500 years ago. The films, 'The Cage' and 'Helio' both deserve praise for supporting the human quest for freedom and individualism. Cinematically, 'Helio' was a winner and 'The Cage' was not.

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E3 Expo: Video Games about Building Up, Not Blowing Up

When I thought about attending the Electronic Entertainment Exposition – E3 – held at the Los Angeles Convention Center June 16-18, I wanted to find games about building things up, not just games about blowing things up. When my daughter was young, we would stay up all night sometimes playing Sim City. No shooting or hand grenades were involved. That’s the kind of game I was looking for. I found two good examples distributed by the German company Daedalic Entertainment: 'Bounty Train' and 'Valhalla Hills'. Both titles are still in development but look promising.

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