Blog

April 14, 2014

Trials of Muhammad Ali Simulcast: Online Screening and Live Chat

Craig Phillips in

The Trials of Muhammad Ali Exclusive Screening & Live Chat with Director Bill Siegel Monday April 14, 10pm ET/7 PT Independent Lens, Kartemquin Films, and Eight Arizona are trying something…...

Lists

April 14, 2014

Bill Siegel’s 12 Documentaries That Had Biggest Impact on Him

Craig Phillips in Lists

Documentary filmmaker Bill Siegel, whose previous film (co-directed with Sam Green) The Weather Underground was nominated for an Oscar, returned to the world of American political activism and history with The…...

Archival photo of Muhammad Ali.
Interviews

April 11, 2014

The Trials of Muhammad Ali: Q&A with Bill Siegel

Independent Lens in Interviews

Editor's note: This interview with filmmaker Bill Siegel is brought to you in partnership with our friends at POV, and conducted by excellent, widely-respected independent journalist Tom Roston.  By Tom…...

April 07, 2014

Meet the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

Enjoy this collection of additional videos and links to check out more from the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, who are the center of Reuben Atlas's new Independent Lens documentary Brothers Hypnotic,…...

Filmmaker Reuben Atlas Shooting Brothers Hypnotic

April 04, 2014

Reuben Atlas Gets Down to Brass Tacks with Brothers Hypnotic

Craig Phillips in Uncategorized

New York-based producer, director, and "non-practicing lawyer" Reuben Atlas has filmmaking in the bloodlines and music frequently on his mind, so it's perhaps no huge surprise that he wanted to…...

April 02, 2014

Independent Lens Wins 3 Peabody Awards

Craig Phillips in

The 73rd annual Peabody Awards — which recognizes distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations, and individuals — were just announced, and three Independent Lens films were among…...

Filmmakers Andrew Cohn (l) and Davy Rothbart

March 31, 2014

How Filmmakers Andrew Cohn and Davy Rothbart Found Medora

Craig Phillips in Uncategorized

The Ann Arbor, Michigan-raised Andrew Cohn and Davy Rothbart have worn a lot of creative hats. Rothbart created the eclectic, cult magazine Found, has contributed to NPR's This American Life, written for…...

Kids of Medora shooting basketball outside in their street clothes
Lists

March 28, 2014

March Madness: Best Basketball Films

Craig Phillips in Lists

Looking back at the 2014 broadcast television premiere of Independent Lens' Medora, not to mention that we're in the midst of NCAA basketball “March Madness,” we have the sport of James Naismith…...

March 26, 2014

Medora T-Shirt Contest!

Craig Phillips in

Medora, which premieres on Independent Lens next Monday, March 31st at 10 PM (check local listings), is the story of a struggling Indiana community and its woebegotten high school basketball…...

Headshot of All of Me filmmaker Alexandra Lescaze
Behind the Films

March 20, 2014

All of Me Filmmaker Alexandra Lescaze on the “Girls” of Austin

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

Filmmaker Alexandra Lescaze's award-winning first film, Where Do You Stand? stories from an American mill, documented the 25-year effort of North Carolina textile workers to organize a union in the face of…...

March 12, 2014

The Great Invisible Wins Grand Jury Prize at SXSW

Craig Phillips in

Margaret Brown's new documentary The Great Invisible won the Grand Jury Prize at the SXSW festival, the top honors for nonfiction film at the prestigious Austin, Texas film festival. The…...

February 28, 2014

Some of Our Favorite Oscar-Nominated Documentaries

Craig Phillips in

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="594"] The Weather Underground[/caption] As it's Academy Award time again, where one feature documentary out of five worthy finalists is chosen as Best, it seemed fitting to…...