Blog

February, 16, 2012

More Than a Month

Independent Lens

Shukree Hassan Tilghman, a 29-year-old African-American filmmaker, sets out on a cross-country campaign to end Black History Month. He stops in various cities, wearing a sandwich board, to solicit signatures on his petition to end the observance. He explains that…
Angela Davis with Afro and orange sweater.
February, 9, 2012

The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975

Independent Lens

For three decades, the film canisters sat undisturbed in a cellar beneath the Swedish National Broadcasting Company. Inside was roll after roll of startlingly fresh and candid 16mm footage shot in the 1960s and 1970s in the United States, all…
Daisy Bates marches with a crowd of supporters carrying signs of support.
February, 2, 2012

Daisy Bates

Independent Lens

In 1957, Daisy Bates became a household name when she fought for the right of nine black students to attend the all-white Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. Bates's public support culminated in a constitutional crisis — pitting a…
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January, 30, 2012

Filmmaker Discusses Daisy Bates and Black History Month

Independent Lens in Uncategorized

Independent Lens is kicking off Black History Month this week with Daisy Bates: First Lady of Little Rock. We caught up with filmmaker Sharon La Cruise to talk about how she came to the project, and why so many people…
Jessie Little Doe works with her daughter Mae on Wampanoag vocabulary
November, 17, 2011

We Still Live Here

Independent Lens

We Still Live Here - Âs Nutayuneân is the story of the revitalization of the Wampanoag language, the first time a language with no native speakers has been revived in this country. The Wampanoag’s ancestors ensured the survival of the…
A woman in headscarf reads the 99 comic book.
October, 13, 2011

Wham! Bam! Islam!

Independent Lens

In 2003, Dr. Naif Al-Mutawa — Kuwaiti psychologist, graduate of Columbia Business School and father of four young boys — had an idea: create a comic book series with roots in Islam and Islamic culture. Al-Mutawa came up with the…
Young boy raises his arms against a golden sunset.
June, 14, 2011

Two Spirits

Independent Lens

Two Spirits interweaves the tragic story of a mother’s loss of her son with a revealing look at the largely unknown history of a time when the world wasn’t simply divided into male and female and many Native American cultures…
Director Jeff Malmberg and Mark Hogancamp with their Marwencol alter egos. (Photo by Chris Shellen)
April, 25, 2011

Marwencol Director Reflects on a Man, His Dolls, and the Touch of Genius

Independent Lens

Jeff Malmberg, director of Marwencol, took on much more than just a film project when he decided to shoot a documentary about Mark Hogancamp. Intrigued by a magazine article about Mark and his imaginary backyard universe, Jeff had to earn…
April, 12, 2011

Jean-Michel Basquiat

Independent Lens

Centered on a rare interview that director and friend Tamra Davis shot with Jean-Michel Basquiat more than 20 years ago, this film chronicles the meteoric rise and fall of the young artist. In the crime-ridden New York City of the…
Cyntoia Brown gazes out a prison van window.
March, 1, 2011

Me Facing Life: Cyntoia’s Story

Independent Lens

In 2004, Cyntoia Brown was arrested for murder. There was no question that a 43-year-old man is dead and that she killed him. What mystified filmmaker Daniel Birman was just how common violence among youth is, and just how rarely…
February, 8, 2011

When I Rise

Independent Lens

A gifted black music student at the University of Texas is thrust into a civil-rights storm that changes her life forever. Barbara Smith Conrad is cast in an opera to co-star with a white male classmate, fueling a racist backlash…
An imam gazes at the city from a rooftop vantage.
December, 20, 2010

The Calling

Independent Lens

It takes a true calling to make faith a way of life. The Calling is a four-hour documentary series that follows seven Muslims, Catholics, Evangelical Christians, and Jews on a dramatic journey as they train to become professional clergy. Embarking…