October 20, 2020
How Three Passionate Candidates Represent Women Shaping the Future
Craig Phillips in Interviews
What does "representation" mean in the midst of a historically tense election year? In her film Represent, filmmaker Hillary Bachelder sought to show the universal struggle to redefine repressive expectations…...
October 09, 2020
From Kilroy to Pepe: A Brief History of Memes
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
By Lennlee Keep What do Pepe the Frog, the Spanish Inquisition, the blinking guy, the French Revolution, concern for the environment, and the Third Reich all have in common? These…...
October 02, 2020
How a Cartoon Frog Became a Symbol for a “Confounding Moment in Our History”
Craig Phillips in Behind the Films
Filmmakers Arthur Jones and Giorgio Angelini both bring very unique artistic backgrounds to the drawing table that led to the fruitful collaboration for Feels Good Man, which is Jones' feature…...
September 25, 2020
Independent Lens Fall Season Has 2020 Vision
Independent Lens in Announcements
The upcoming slate of films airing on Independent Lens on PBS this fall is just one part of an incredible season coming up that will last through the Spring in…...
September 24, 2020
Comfort Viewing: What Filmmakers and Writers Are Watching to Get Through It
Craig Phillips in Lifestyle
What are YOU watching to provide comfort during these trying times? Filmmakers, artists, critics and writers chimed in with their personal favorite shows and films to watch when in dire…...
September 09, 2020
Honor Hispanic Heritage Month with Eight Unique Documentaries
Independent Lens in Lists
By Lola Méndez Hispanic Heritage Month has been honored annually in the United States since 1968 when President Lyndon Johnson first launched it as Hispanic Heritage Week. In 1988, President…...
August 27, 2020
The Science of Kindness: It’s Not Easy Being Nice
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
Author Josh Kurz is a science communicator and filmmaker, and the co-creator of the audio program Shabam, which uses a zombie apocalypse to talk about real science. By Josh Kurz…...
July 16, 2020
The Evolution of Disability in Film: After the Accolades, the Work Continues
Independent Lens in
By Lawrence Carter-Long Once upon a time, disability was just a diagnosis. Through time, the word has evolved to encompass larger more expansive concepts like community, identity, and culture. In…...
July 10, 2020
“Your Vote Is Your Voice”: Best Films About Voting Rights
Sharon Knolle in Film History
The right to vote is one of the most fundamental rights in a Democracy, and yet who has been allowed to vote in America has been a battle that’s been…...
June 26, 2020
And the Winner of the 2019-2020 Audience Award is… (UPDATED)
Independent Lens in Awards
Update (7/9): With voting now closed and a total of 13,331 votes, we are thrilled to announce the winner of the Independent Lens Audience Award: Decade of Fire Congrats to…...
June 17, 2020
Six Unusual Instruments and How They Work
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
By Ade D. Adeniji Stacy Tenenbaum’s film Pipe Dreams features four young organ players competing in the prestigious Canadian International Organ Competition, held every few years in Montreal. What’s striking…...
June 17, 2020
Young Musicians Play Ancient Instrument in the “Olympics of the Pipe Organ”
Craig Phillips in Behind the Films
The Montreal-based filmmaker Stacey Tenenbaum's joyful film The Art of the Shine, which aired on PBS, took the director all over the world, from New York to Toronto, Paris to…...