The women of a small, remote village in the Indian Himalayas have their world transformed with the arrival of a silk weaving cooperative. One woman, Hema, begins a cooperative in her new village to teach local women—and her husband—to weave.  more »

This documentary on Schindler, the wartime rescuer of 1200 Jews, grapples with the moral ambiguity of a flawed hero.  more »

Twenty-year-old Adam Abdul Hakeem was the first person in American judicial history to be found innocent by reason of self defense in a police shooting case.  more »

This is a compelling portrait of the legendary African American leader, Adam Clayton Powell, as well as a fascinating look at the beginning of modern black politics in this country.  more »

This remarkable film shows in a short space of time many examples of children from pre-school age to high school, and even adults, who suffer from ADHD.  more »

This intriguing four-part series chronicles scientists and anthropologists searching for vanishing populations, lost cultures, and hidden cities.  more »

Kate Bornstein, writer and performer, was born a man. This documentary presents her frank account of her personal journey from unhappy boy child into liberated transsexual lesbian.  more »

This no-holds-barred documentary follows the illicit opium industry, from the cultivation of the opium plants, to the processing of heroin, to the cross border smuggling that occurs between Afghanistan and Iran.  more »

Africa is a continent fraught with problems. This series spotlights five former Western colonies (Somalia, Mali, Senegal, South Africa, and Zimbabwe), putting in clear perspective the gravity of the situation that wars, refugees, famine and disease have brought on them. Globalization has forced some African nations into heavy debt. While industrial nations argue for human rights, the series shows that there are survival issues that may be even more pressing.  more »

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A black musician and composer bridges two cultures: West African music with roots in the 13th century and classical European music.  more »

In this eye-opening film, the award-winning African journalist Sorious Samura reveals how corruption has become normal and accepted in Africa -- it is one of the root causes of Africa's many problems. Sadly, most aid money given by the West never reaches those it is meant to help; it gets siphoned off by corrupt governments.  more »

Gay people in Africa are facing increased persecution in a continent where two=thirds of countries retain laws against homosexuals.  more »

This film made by a woman who suffered from her mother's suicide provides support and understanding for the many survivors of suicide.  more »

This heartwarming film follows a group of older adults who work in a factory where the average age is 73 and there is no fixed retirement. Both the workers (some in their late 80’s) and the owners reap huge rewards from this enlightened policy.  more »

Agent Yellow is a powerful indictment of the U.S. government’s systematic prejudice against Chinese-American scientists. The film focuses on the mistreatment of Chinese scientists who contributed significantly to American military research.  more »

An in-depth look at the culture and experience of normal aging in the area of the world often called an "epicenter of longevity."  more »

Navigating the transition from adolescence to adulthood is challenging for even the most mature and privileged youth. For three young people in New York and Los Angeles, making the transition to independent living is considerably more difficult as they “age out” of the foster care system and find themselves suddenly on their own for the first time.  more »

This program gives voice to the many moral, legal and ethical concerns raised by the epidemic. What steps should society take to protect people?  more »

This report on the AIDS crisis in Africa shows that the disease cuts across the entire population, not just drug abusers and homosexuals. Checking the spread of the disease is complicated by poverty and cultural mores.  more »

The film travels to Kenya, Brazil and Thailand to tell the personal stories of women with AIDS. Set against a background of disease, poverty and social subjugation this is a story of vitality and will power, and of women who have the courage to fight against reigning cultural and religious traditions.  more »

A close-up view of an eight-year-old boy who works as a domestic in Calcutta. Despite his hard life, he feels fortunate to have a job that gives him food as wages.  more »

This is a deeply personal exploration of the bedroom politics that make black women especially vulnerable to AIDS infection. The film follows a young female doctor, working in the South Bronx, as she gives medical and emotional support to her afflicted patients.  more »

Tran Van Lam was foreign minister of South Vietnam during the devastating war with the North. During the war he dispersed his nine children to Australia, France, the US, and Scotland with the hope that they would return to Vietnam after the war. The film captures their challenges to make new lives in the countries to which they immigrated.  more »

This powerful documentary provides the historical context for the establishment of the '60s Civil Rights Movement, and includes rare clips of Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, Fred Hampton, and other activists.  more »

This documentary examines one family burdened with a history of early onset Alzheimer's and captures their battle with the debilitating disease.The documentary also explores new treatments and preventive measures which may offer hope for future Alzheimer's patients.  more »

The Amazing Normal Story is the true personal story of the filmmaker who became sexually involved with a man old enough to be her father when she was twelve years old. This documentary is a sensitive portrayal of the courageous journey she takes to rediscover and understand her past.  more »

Filmmaker Geoffrey O'Conner (see Contact and At the Edge of Conquest) chronicles the political events in the Amazon beginning with the assassination of Chico Mendes in l998. He analyzes the complex interaction between indigenous societies and the" outsiders" who are encroaching on the rain forest.  more »

Informative and absorbing, this film illuminates the basis of deforestation and the associated land use problem in the Brazilian Amazon. It includes one of the last interviews with Chico Mendes who was murderd for his outspoken opposition to land clearance.  more »

This admiring portrait of indefatigable social activist Abe Osheroff weaves through twentieth century American history, bringing alive historical issues for a new audience.  more »

American Swan in Paris is both a love letter to Paris and to dance. It features the charming Kathleen Thielhelm, from Wisconsin, a recent addition to the Bejart Ballet Lausanne.  more »

The political issues behind the control of water in North America.  more »

This view of the Amish shows a dynamic people who have modified their rules so that they can prosper in commercial enterprises. Modern conveniences, such as telephones, that they shun at home they use in their businesses.  more »

An exclusive portrait of a rarely-filmed religious community that separates itself from the world. It captures the day-to-day life of a people who have preserved their rural traditions.  more »

Along with the personal story of one young man's return to Cambodia years after his escape from its holocaust, this compelling documentary traces the history of his homeland, from the reign of King Sihanouk, to his overthrow, with American support, by Lon Nol, a right wing former police chief.  more »

This documentary provides the rare opportunity of following a family with an Alzheimer's victim for two years. As Anna declines, her husband Jack and daughter Zena are faced with the agonizing task of putting Anna into a nursing home.  more »

In 1999, twenty-year-old Khristian Oliver was sentenced to death in Nacogdoches, Texas after being found guilty of murder. In this Christian community, the fact that the Bible was used as a guide in the jury room was not questioned. This documentary about Oliver¹s trial and its aftermath paints a vivid picture of Christian fundamentalism and the extent to which it is spread across the Bible Belt.  more »

This charming film shows how the filmmaker, an immigrant from Vietnam, found a new life in America while preserving his cultural tradition through cooking, eating and sharing the rich and varied food of his homeland. First in a trilogy, with Pins and Noodles and A Wok in Progress.  more »

This documentary examines the physiology of speech and shows how the larynx, vocal chords, wind pipe, tongue and lips produce the sounds of speech. Useful for speech and hearing programs.  more »

This is an inspiring film about mother that refused to institutionalize her Down's syndrome son. The family moved to a small town where John grew and blossomed.  more »

The incidence of grandparents raising their grandchildren as primary caregivers has increased 30 percent since 2000. This film depicts such a situation as we see the daily life of a frail 77- year-old grandmother who is raising four grandsons aged 5-8.  more »

This multi-festival film is a portrayal of the fortitude of an immigrant "war bride" in America. Seventy-six-year-old Young-Ja Wike is one of the 10,000 Korean women who married American G.I.s. after the war. For them marriage was the only escape from the crushing poverty of post-war Korea.  more »

A Somalian woman uses all methods at her disposal to change the mindset of her people about circumcision.  more »

A psychiatrist produced this sensitive film on bereavement, showing four children aged three to eleven, who lost a family member through death.  more »

The three vibrant people profiled in this film will challenge anyone¹s preconceptions of old age. They all live independently in Angelus Plaza, a retirement home in downtown Los Angeles. They display a sense of humor, vitality, and interest in life despite the usual physical complaints of old age.  more »

This program examines anger, from its primordial roots in self-defense to its expression in modern violence. Part of a four-part series, Passion & Fury: The Emotional Brain.  more »

Street tough and very vulnerable, this young girl has honed her survival skills.  more »

This film is about two people faced with the daunting task of learning to speak again. As the wife of one of them says, "...a person without language is a non-person."  more »

In the tradition of T.E. Lawrence of Arabia, Wilfred Thesiger lived among the Bedouins and explored the dessert. Archival footage and interviews with aging sheiks attest to his adventures and to his contributions in revealing this heretofore hidden world. (more)  more »

This film gives voice to African-American students around the country as they articulate issues of race, racism and race relations.  more »

A Westerner explores the institution of arranged marriages with her married Indian friends. She finds that there are many variations in the way these marriages are arranged, but in all cases, the marriage is a family matter, often used to reinforce the social standing of the family, and to preserve values from generation to generation.  more »

The slaves of the Caribbean contributed not only to the wealth of their masters, but also to the cultural heritage of the British Empire. As this film shows, the National Gallery, the Tate Gallery, and the British Museum were all funded by money made from the slave trade.  more »

The Artist Was a Woman uncovers the works of several gifted female artists while exploring why their talent was so often overlooked.  more »

Artists of the Bahamas is a unique film that brings to light the rich artistic talent flourishing on the islands. The film profiles locally and internationally recognized artists in the homes, communities, and studios where they develop their vibrant creations.  more »

This film focuses on the assertive market women of Ghana who are subordinate in domestic matters but are powerful in the marketplace.  more »

In a backlash against feminism, European men marry Asian wives through advertisements. This footnote to social history will set any women's studies class gnashing their teeth.  more »

A close up look at the tribe in Papua New Guinea, known as "the men who eat men."  more »

This powerful documentary chronicles a Ghanaian young woman’s desperate attempt to escape the ritual of female circumcision in her native land.  more »

To counteract severe economic hardships, Cubans are seeking strength in religion, from Christianity to Afro-Cuban forms of worship.  more »

This film looks at the situation of the isolated Waiapi Indians in Brazil, focusing on their charismatic leader as he travels to Brazil's capitol to fight threats from gold miners and the government's plans for highway construction across their land.  more »

A look at attitudes towards service, such as waiters and salespeople, in four different Western countries, and how service is affected by class and culture.  more »

This is the colorful story of Mustafa Kemal, later known as Ataturk, the charismatic leader of Turkey after the first World War, who secularized the country to bring it into the modern world.  more »

This sensitive film takes a comprehensive view of autism by focusing on three children of different ages, with different behavioral patterns.  more »

This is an intimate portrait of a single mother in Burkina Faso who supports her six children through her street-side rice business. The film takes us through Awa's arduous 16 hour workday, interspliced with interviews of her children who are grateful for her hard work in their behalf. Here is a glimpse of some of the economic realities faced by women today in urban Africa.  more »