LEWISTON – The Bates College Program in Environmental Studies will show “Affluenza,” an acclaimed 1997 documentary about rampant materialism in America, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 5, in Room 104, Olin Arts Center, 75 Russell St.

Written and co-produced by John de Graaf, “Affluenza” is the first in a documentary film series at Bates about environmental issues. The screenings are open to the public at no charge. For more information, people may phone 786-6464.

All are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Olin 104. The other films in the series are: “Wilderness and Spirit: A Mountain Called Katahdin,” by the Portland filmmaker called Huey (Nov. 9); “Jane Goodall: Chimps in Crisis,” a National Geographic film by David Hamlin (Nov. 16); and “Blue Vinyl,” by New York City filmmaker Judith Helfand (Nov. 30).

The series is in conjunction with the course “Environmental Filmmaking in Theory and Practice,” taught by Melissa Paly. She’s a documentary filmmaker whose work has been broadcast on PBS and cable television, and has won awards at film festivals in this country and abroad. Documentaries by students in the course will be shown Dec. 7.

“Affluenza” combines personal stories, vintage film clips and commentary to examine American materialism. According to the film’s distributor, Bullfrog Films, materialism “is having a devastating impact on our families, communities and the environment.”

John de Graaf has been producing PBS documentaries for 27 years. He was co-producer, writer and editor of the popular “Affluenza” specials and more than a dozen other national prime-time specials. He has received more than 100 awards for filmmaking and is the co-author of the book “Affluenza: The All-Consuming Epidemic.”