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While there's been no shortage of commentary about the structural crisis plaguing the American economic and political system, from wage stagnation and chronic unemployment to unchecked corporate and state power and growing inequality, analyses that offer practical, politically viable solutions to these problems have been few and far between. This illustrated presentation from distinguished historian and political economist Gar Alperovitz is a rare and stunning exception. Pointing to efforts already under way in thousands of communities across the U.S., from co-ops and community land trusts to municipal, state, and federal initiatives that promote entrepreneurship and sustainability, Alperovitz marshals years of research to show how bottom-up strategies can work to check monopolistic corporate power, democratize wealth, and empower communities. The result is a highly accessible look at the current economy and a common-sense roadmap for building a system more in sync with American values.
In the 80s, Central America was in crisis. Wracked by brutal civil wars, death squads and militia backed by the warring Superpowers of the Cold War. Yet one man at the center of this conflict decided to take action against the chaos. 'The Price of Kings: Oscar Arias' explores the legacy of this man: the former President of Costa Rica and lone leader without an army who had the courage to forge peace with his neighbors against the will of US President, at risk to his own life and the impoverishment of his people. Arias' diplomacy and leadership brought an end to the bloodshed, for which he received the Nobel Peace Prize and the adoration of his people. Now his contraversial policy choices leave his reputation destroyed. Arias' pursuit of peace and prosperity for his people came at a significant personal cost, and his story reveals that even the best intentions can be held against you.
On Friday May 14th 1948 Shimon Peres was with the first Prime Minister of Israel, David Ben Gurion, as he declared Israeli independence. Watching the celebrations afterwards he turned to the young Shimon Peres, future Prime Minister and current President of Israel and predicted the Middle East conflict that followed. Shimon Peres has quite literally spent a lifetime at the seat of power since that very day and with a seven-decade-long career in politics at the heart of the Middle East conflict. The second in the series of documentary films reveals the price he paid for being a leader, helping us answer the question "What is Leadership?" As a nation builder it's hard to overestimate the achievements of Shimon Peres, but in the words of the President, "What we call experience the younger generation call a chain of mistakes". Despite winning the Nobel Peace Prize for his attempts to negotiate peace between Israel, the nation he helped to build, and it's neighbors; Israel remains at war.
Yasser Arafat's political legacy is one marred by controversy. To some, he was a heroic revolutionary who fought for the freedom of Palestine and the rights of his people; to others he was a terrorist and leader of a corrupt state. Yet regardless of the dichotomy, Yasser Arafat's position at the heart of the Middle East conflict for over forty years makes him a character of incredible significance. With groundbreaking access to the people who knew Yasser Arafat best; his wife, Suha Arafat, his political allies and his adversaries, the film delves into Yasser Arafat's history, the personal struggles he faced and sacrifices he made seeking to establish peace with Israel, whilst at the same time trying to build a Palestinian nation for his people.
Imagine that a single voice carries as much weight as the CEO of Goldman Sachs.
In this gripping first-hand account of the Occupy Wall Street movement, filmmaker and former high school teacher Dennis Trainor Jr. takes an inside look at how a New York-based protest against corporate greed and economic inequality in the autumn of 2011 sparked a full-scale street revolution that continues to send shock waves through the American political system.
Trainor weaves commentary from organizers, activists, and leading progressive thinkers with riveting street-level dispatches from New York's Zuccotti Park, Washington DC, and beyond. The result is a passionate and clear-eyed look at a movement founded on the core belief that the American political and economic system should "place human need above corporate greed" and do something about growing inequality.
Narrated by Trainor, the documentary features filmmaker Michael Moore, Dr. Cornel West (Princeton University), comic/author/activist Lee Camp, journalists Nathan Schneider (Harper's, The Nation), Naomi Klein (The Nation) and more.
Reviews
"This is not amateur hour. This is a movie as well made as any Hollywood blockbuster." - MichaelMoore.com
"(American Autumn) is calm and smart, offsetting its stridency with discussion, music, even humor, while issuing a call to arms." - New York Times
"American Autumn impresses most where many docs disappoint, expanding its scope without short-changing the wider subjects it covers." - Variety
When Barack Obama was elected in 2008, rarely had expectations been so high, and the obstacles to achieve them so great. The new President had to confront major crises -economic collapse chief among them - as well as an Opposition wildly determined to discredit him and destroy his agenda.
The film takes us inside the White House with exclusive footage from the NBC News Archives. Go behind the scenes of this epic fight, with Obama's main advisors and leading political analysts telling the inside story on the President's historic and rocky first term.
Ryan Gosling narrates this engrossing film about social activism, the forces that galvanized the Occupy movement, and how a new generation of young people is coming to terms with a rapidly changing world. The film skillfully weaves commentary from some of the country's leading political and social analysts with personal observations from a collective of young musicians, a tight-knit group of suburban high-school students, and a young conservative family, providing a nuanced look at the myriad challenges facing the next generation of Americans. The result is as personal as it is political, as much a portrait of the contemporary political scene as of a generation of young people finding their way in uncertain times.
Features Noam Chomsky, the late Howard Zinn, Adbusters' Kalle Lasn, Andrew Bacevich, Amy Goodman, Talib Kweli, Sut Jhally, and music from STS9.
Reviews
"A well-rounded documentary. Deconstruct[s] the way that people, and especially teens, absorb information from the media." - Common Sense Media
"A timely documentary that takes an in-depth look at the reasons behind the Occupy movement, and the current state of social activism in the US." - Indiewire
Award-winning filmmaker Byron Hurt offers a fascinating exploration of the soul food tradition, its relevance to black cultural identity, and its continuing popularity despite the known dangers of high-fat, high-calorie diets. Inspired by his father's lifelong love affair with soul food even in the face of a life-threatening health crisis, Hurt discovers that the relationship between African-Americans and dishes like ribs, grits, and fried chicken is deep-rooted and culturally based. At the same time, he moves beyond matters of culture and individual taste to show how the economics of the food industry have combined with socioeconomic conditions in predominantly black neighborhoods to dramatically limit food choices. The result is an absorbing and ultimately inspiring look at the cultural politics of food and the complex interplay between identity, taste, power, and health. Features soul food cooks, historians, doctors, and food justice movement activists who are challenging the food industry, creating sustainable gardens, and advocating for better supermarkets, more farmers' markets, and healthier takes on soul food.
Reviews
"Soul Food Junkies is so important -- an instant classic, even. Byron Hurt is calling for change, and that change starts at home, in the kitchen." - New York Daily News
"It's a very smart film, alarming but not shaming, about how vexing it is to tell people to eat differently when they associate making great traditional foods with the closest social bonds they have." - NPR
"Mr. Hurt blends gravity with levity and ventures into the Deep South to explore the origins of old-fashioned, home-cooked soul food¡K In a country where the Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that more than one-third of U.S. adults are overweight, Mr. Hurt tries to offer insight in to what has gone wrong in the food supply-chain as well as what America needs to do in order reverse the descent into obesity." - The Wall Street Journal
Awards
Winner, Best Documentary, American Black Film Festival 2012
Winner, Best Documentary Feature, Urbanworld Film Festival 2012
From the director of multi-award-winning documentary Garbage Dreams , Words of Witness follows a 22-year-old female reporter for the independent newspaper Egypt Independent , as she covers Egypt's transition to democracy, from the heyday of Tahir Square to Egypt's first free and fair presidential election. Defying cultural and gender norms as well as family expectations, Heba takes to the streets to report, using Facebook posts, tweets, and text messages, on an Egypt in turmoil.
For thirty years, Egypt was ruled by the oppressive regime of President Hosnu Mubarak. When Mubarak resigned and transferred the power to the Army to lead the country in the transition to democracy, the Tahir Square demonstrators celebrate chanting "The Army and the people will complete the journey". However, as Heba and the nation quickly realize, the struggle for a new order has just begun.
Despite repetitive arguments with her mother who is fearing for her daughter's life and cautious of respecting women's traditional roles, Heba covers a series of historical events. She interviews parents of missing demonstrators; takes an active part in a thrilling demonstration at the State Security headquarters resulting in the discovery of thousand of classified files on public figures and ordinary citizens kept by the police; gets caught in a tense religious event protesting against the State police who are preventing the rebuilding of a church; witnesses the army, once hailed as the people's liberators, using violence and later torture and taking down demonstrators camps in Tahir Square; and, finally, documents the election process.
Words of Witness offers a fascinating account of Egypt post-revolution as the nation faces the challenges that lay ahead; as well as a moving portrait of an incredible, fearless young woman, who is now a contributor to The New York Times. Heba's story is an illustration of the critical role social media played in the Arab Spring, as nations are in the process of reinventing themselves and finding their voices.
Reviews
"A crucial story of modern revolution... The ambitious, articulate Afify bucks native female tradition... as she confidently immerses herself into a series of precarious, post-Mubarak actions and protests" - The Los Angeles Times
"Raw and fascinating." - Wall Street Journal
"As a young truth-seeker, an idealist, and female, Heba is very much a heroine for the 21st century." - Slant
In the summer of 2009, shortly after Barack Obama and a Democratic Congress swept to power promising a new era of hope and change, a citizens protest movement emerged out of nowhere threatening to derail their agenda. Some said this uprising was the epitome of grassroots democracy. Others said it was a classic example of 'astroturfing' -- an elaborate corporate public relations effort designed to create the impression of a spontaneous uprising. Curious to find out for himself, Australian filmmaker Taki Oldham goes undercover and straight into the heart of the movement. He visits raucous health care town hall meetings where irate voters parrot insurance industry PR; learns that home-grown "citizen groups" challenging the science behind climate change are funded by big oil companies; and infiltrates a tea party movement whose anti-government rage turns out to be less the product of populist rage than of corporate strategy. In the end, The Billionaires' Tea Party offers a terrifying look at how corporate elites are exploiting the anxieties of ordinary Americans -- capitalizing on anger, resentment, and paranoia to advance a narrow, often anti-democratic, agenda.
Reviews
"Taki Oldham's documentary is journalism at its best. I wish every American could see it before the election. I just watched it and am even more concerned about the future of our democracy than ever before." - Wendell Potter | Author of Deadly Spin: An Insurance Industry Insider Speaks Out on How Corporate PR is Killing Health Care and Deceiving Americans
"Brilliant." - George Monbiot | The Guardian
"Essential viewing." - David Suzuki | Author & Environmentalist
Gene Sharp hardly seems like one of the world's most dangerous men. White-haired and soft-spoken, the 83-year-old professor mostly keeps to himself, spending much of his time in his small Boston home reading, writing, and tending to his orchid garden. But to the world's most brutal dictators, Professor Sharp's ideas have proven catastrophic. In this fascinating new film, first-time director Ruaridh Arrow details how an obscure list of nonviolent actions authored by Sharp in 1973 has served as a blueprint for anti-authoritarian revolts everywhere from Eastern Europe and the Balkans to the Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. Giving as much attention to the substance of Sharp's "198 Methods of Nonviolent Action" as it does to the democratic rebels who have courageously made these methods their own, How to Start a Revolution bears witness not only to the power of nonviolent struggle, but to how one person of conscience can quietly influence the lives of millions of people. Features commentary from Sharp's close ally Retired U.S. Army Colonel Robert Helvey, Sharp himself, and many of the revolutionary leaders his work has inspired.
DVD contains two versions: a full length version (82 minutes) and an abridged version (52 minutes).
Reviews
"A world conquering British documentary" - The Daily Telegraph
"A vital conversation starter and educational tool for a world awash with violence." - The Huffington Post
"Inspirational" - The Globe & Mail
Awards
Best Documentary - Fort Lauderdale Film Festival
Best Documentary - Boston Film Festival
Best Documentary - Raindance Film Festival, London
Special Jury Prize - One World Film Festival - Ottawa
Canada has the largest mining industry in the world, bar none, but we also have one of the worst reputations. Who's holding Canada accountable for its abuses in developing countries?
A mining watchdog agency has done little to protect communities abroad, critics say. In 2009, the federal government appointed a corporate social responsibility counsellor to probe complaints about Canadian companies committing abuses in developing countries. The Toronto-based office, however, has only received two complaints in the past two years - one of which was recently dropped because the mining corporation chose not to undergo the voluntary investigation.
Liberal MP John McKay advises us all to stop brandishing our Canadian flags on our backpacks. As he tells reporter Wendy Mesley in this special report, our international image is changing fast. From intimidation to poisoned water to murder, Canadian mining companies have been implicated in many mining infractions abroad. And the mining watchdog is doing little to curb this.
DVD (Closed Captioned) / 2011 / (Grades 8-12, Adult Education, Post Secondary) / 12 minutes
Young Arabs takes viewers inside an elite preparatory school in heart of Cairo, Egypt. The film offers a quiet encounter with a collection of students as they reflect on God, America, terrorism, marriage, the Middle East, and more. Despite being founded and still managed by French-trained Jesuit priests, the students and faculty of this all-boys school are roughly 60% Muslim and 40% Christian. By virtue of lineage, moreover, these young men are expected to help lead the Middle East into a new and uncertain world - a fact that, along with the socioeconomic and religious complexion of the school, gives their views particular significance.
Awards
Silverdocs, Washington, DC, 2008
Short Film Award, AAA/Society for Visual Anthropology Film, Video & Multimedia Festival, 2009
Best Short Documentary, Sidewalk Moving Picture Festival, Birmingham, AL, 2008
An experiment in democracy is taking place in Wuhan, the most populous city in central China. For the first time ever, the students in grade three at Evergreen Primary School have been asked to elect a class monitor. Traditionally appointed by the teacher, the class monitor holds a powerful position, helping to control the students, keeping them on task and doling out punishment to those who disobey. The teacher has chosen three candidates: Luo Lei (a boy), the current class monitor; Cheng Cheng (a boy); and Xu Xiaofei (a girl). Each candidate is asked to choose two assistants to help with his or her campaign.
To prove their worthiness, the candidates must perform in three events. First is a talent show, where each candidate plays an instrument or sings a song. Second is a debate, in which the candidates bring up the shortcomings of their opponents as well as their own personal qualifications. And finally, each candidate must deliver a speech, an opportunity to appeal directly to classmates and ask for their votes.
At home, each of the children is coached by his or her parents and pushed to practice and memorize for each stage of the campaign. Although their parents are supportive, the candidates feel the pressure. Tears and the occasional angry outburst reveal the emotional impact. At school, the candidates talk to classmates one-on-one, making promises, planning tactics (including negative ones) and at times expressing doubts about their own candidacies.
For all three children, the campaign takes its toll, especially for the losing candidates and their assistants. Viewers are left to decide if the experiment in democracy has been "successful" and what it might mean for democracy in China. Please Vote for Me challenges those committed to China's democratization to consider the feasibility of, and processes involved in, its implementation.
Review
"This film should lead to much class discussion regarding ethics, campaigning and what it means to ask the question ¡¥What is Democracy?' Recommended." - Educational Media Reviews Online
Note
Nominated, Best International Feature Documentary, Cinema Eye Awards, 2008
Awards
Winner, Sterling Feature Award, Silverdocs Film Festival, 2007
Working Films Award, Full Frame Documentary Film Festival, 2008
Best Educational documentary, DOCNZ, 2007
Special Jury Prize, Taiwan International Children's Film Festival, 2008
Best Documentary Award, Ashland Independent Film Fest, 2008
Best Documentary, Jackson Hole Film Festival, 2008
An active citizen, says the prolific and influentialscholar and teacher Henry Giroux, is "somebody who has the capacity not only to understand and engage the world but to transform it when necessary - and to believe he or she can do that. In this provocative new interview, Giroux speaks with passion and clarity about the inextricable links between education, civic engagement, and social justice. Strongly influenced by Paulo Freire, the Brazilian scholar of progressive education, Giroux advocates for a pedagogy of liberation that challenges inequality, oppression, fundamentalism, and authoritarianism, while developing the critical capacities needed to engage ideas and the world. Essential viewing for teachers and students of education, cultural studies, and communication.
This DVD compilation features stand-alone interviews with some of the most prominent scholars and activists on the subject of mainstream media's coverage of the "war on terrorism."
The format is designed to allow educators to bring the voices of these cultural analysts directly into their classrooms.
Featuring interviews with Noam Chomsky, Kevin Danaher, Robert Jensen, Naomi Klein, Manning Marable, and 18 others.
Review
"A must for communication, modern world history, social studies, and journalism classrooms." - ROB WILLIAMS, Co-President, Action Coalition for Media Education
Filmmaker Rehad Desai takes us on an intimate journey mapped out by the scars etched into his family's life from having a father who was intensely involved in politics. Barney Desai was a political hero during South Africa's struggle for freedom, yet as a father he was damagingly absent emotionally. Rehad spent most of his young life in exile and became politically active himself. On this intensely personal journey into his past, Rehad realizes he is following in his fathers footsteps as he reviews his relationship with his own estranged teenage son.
Featuring ROBERT MCCHESNEY
With MARK CRISPIN MILLER
Robert McChesney, author of the award-winning book of the same title, examines the impact of media consolidation on journalism and dem- ocracy, arguing that far from delivering on the promise of more choice and greater diversity, consolidation has undermined competition resulting in an increasingly homogenized media land- scape and a news media system high on sensation-alism and low on information.
Review
"A valuable tool for educators and activists alike." - DAVID BARSAMIAN, Alternative Radio
DVD (With English, Spanish Subtitles) / 2003 / 30 minutes
Political theorist Justin Lewis examines how polling data presented in the media do not simply reflect what Americans think, but construct public opinion itself. Exploding the myth that most Americans are moderate or conservative, Constructing Public Opinion demonstrates how political elites help to promote militarism, and how mainstream media sustain an electoral system with a built-in bias against the interests of ordinary people.
Divided Loyalties studies the stories of Greek and Turkish Cypriot refugees and nationals who seek to reconcile their fractured heritage from the history of the proud, yet divided island: Cyprus. Shot in 16 mm the film reveals both a visual and emotional landscape of the island. Structured around the chronological political legacy of Cyprus, award-winning director and cinematographer Sophia Constantinou explores the memories and personal histories of its natives, as well as her own family.
Unknown to many, Cyprus, as of 2001, is one of the most densely militarized zones in the world. The United Nations, Turkey and Great Britain continue to hold strong military presences in Cyprus -severing the island into separate Greek and Turkish territories. Cypriots are constantly reminded of their disjointed identities by the military border zone physically splitting the island into North and South regions. Such turbulence resulted in the scattering of Cypriots around the globe, deunifying familial, individual and collective identities. Important for teaching international relations, middle eastern studies, anthropology, conflict resolution and identity.
Festivals
University of California-Irvine Human Rights Film Festival 2001
Independent Showcase -Greek Cultural Center Astoria NY 2001
Georgetown Independent Film Festival 2001-Honorable Mention
Pennsylvania Film Festival- Documentary Showcase 2001
United Nations Association Film Festival 2001
World Affairs Council -San Francisco 2001
Queens Museum of Art Queens, NY 2001
Center for Modern Greek Studies-San Francisco
Award
44th San Francisco International Film Festival-Golden Gate Doc. Award Winner -2001
This powerful and universally-acclaimed documentary explores the revolutionary movement fighting for democracy in Burma and depicts how young people, in particular, are affected by the human rights abuses of Burma's dictatorial military government, the State Law and Order Restoration Council. This regime forcibly overthrew Burma's free 1990 election, when the Burmese people voted overwhelmingly for the National League of Democracy, the party of nonviolence advocate and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Burma Diary focuses on a young man, Tint Aung, who in college was active in the protest movement, but who has since been driven by the oppressive regime into exile in the jungle along the border of Burma and Thailand. As the film chronicles four harsh years of Tint Aung's struggle to survive, it provides a passionate and at times heartbreaking study of the hopes of and the obstacles facing the Burmese democracy movement.
Reviews
A marvelous introductory film on contemporary issues in Burma. It captured my students' attention immediately because it focused on a young man from the same age group as their own. Students could identify with him and understand the extraordinary risks that he was taking. While many students knew nothing about Burma at the onset of the film, it helped them to understand the political, economic, and social issues there, and sparked a genuine interest to learn more about the country.- Laurene Wu McClain, Dept. of Social Sciences, City College of San Francisco
A superb documentary. It was informative, fascinating, and thought-provoking, and it moved everyone in the class, including myself.-Hanna Slurua, Chairperson, School of Oriental and African Studies, Univ. of London
Festivals
Free Burma Film Festival, Los Angeles, 1997
San Francisco Buddhist Center, 1997
Zen Center, San Francisco, 1997
People's Peace House, Belfast, 1997
Soeterijin Theater, Amsterdam, 1997
Association for Asian Studies Conference, 1998
Asian Pacific International Film Festival, Los Angeles, 1998
Berlin Intl. Film Festival, 1998
Images Asia, Chiang Mai, 1998
Irish Film Centre, Dublin, 1998
Women in the Director's Chair Film Festival, Chicago, 1998
Seoul Human Rights Film Festival, 1998
Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand, 1998
Uruguay International Film Festival, Montevideo, 1998
Amnesty International Film Festival, Vancouver, 1998
Human Rights Watch Intl. Film Festival, London,1998
Bangkok International Film Festival, 1998
Broadcast, PBS-17 stations, USA, 1998
Broadcast, SBS Australia, 1998
Broadcast, Danish State Television, 1998
Broadcast, Portugal State Television, 1998
Broadcast, Fiji Channel 1 Television, 1999
Award
Gold Apple Award, National Educational Film Festival, 1998
Based on Edward Said's influential book, Orientalism, this engaging and lavishly illustrated program examines the context within which he conceived the book, as well as his cultural analysis of media representations of the Middle East and Islam. In a post-9/11 world, this program provides an indispensable perspective.
Aftershocks is about the transformation of the Welfare State into an ally of the Corporation. It examines the acquisition/ displacement of two quake-affected villages for lignite mining and power generation. It probes the microcosm in the nature of a study "from below" of globalisation of Economy and corporatisation of Democracy.
Awards
Robert Flaherty prize, Pennsylvania film festival (USA;2002)
Le Prix de la Presse politique (Best documentary film), 16th Fribourg International film festival (Switzerland; 2002)
John Michaels memorial award and Bronze for best documentary feature, Big Muddy film fest (USA; 2002)
Best Documentary ( feature-length), Big miniDV film festival (USA; 2002),
Final Solution is a study of the politics of hate. Set in Gujarat during the period Feb/March 2002 - July 2003, the film graphically documents the changing face of right-wing politics in India through a study of the 2002 genocide of Moslems in Gujarat. It specifically examines political tendencies reminiscient of the Nazi Germany of early/mid-1930s. Final Solution is anti-hate/ violence as "those who forget history are condemned to relive it".
Awards
Wolfgang Staudte award & Special Jury Award (Netpac), Berlin International film festival (2004)
Humanitarian Award for Outstanding Documentary, HongKong International film festival (2004)
Montgolfiere d'Or (Best Documentary) & Le Prix Fip/Pil' du Public (Audience award), Festival des 3 Continents at
Nantes (France; 2004)
Best Film, Freedom of Expression awards by Index on Censorship (UK; 2005)
Silver Dhow, Zanzibar International film festival (2004)
Best documentary, Big MiniDV (USA; 2004)
Special Jury Award, Karafest (Karachi; 2004)
Special Jury Award, Film South Asia (Kathmandu; 2005)
Human Rights Award, Docupolis (Barcelona; 2005)
Special Jury Mention, Munich Dokfest (2004)
Special Jury Mention, Bangkok International filmfest (2005)
Best Documentary/Short Film, Apsara Awards(India;2006)
Special Award by NRIs for a Secular and Harmonious India (NRI-SAHI), NY-NJ, USA (2004)
Special Award by AFMI, USA-Canada (2004)
Special Jury Award, Worldfest 2005 (Houston)
Special Jury Award, Mar Del Plata Independent film festival (2005; Argentina)