August 24, 2017
Dogumentary Now: 7 Docs About Urban Dogs
Sharon Knolle in Lists
Just like the human population, dogs in the city can live a life of luxury or — sadly — roam the streets looking for food, shelter and the occasional kind…...
June 18, 2017
12 Father’s Day Docs: Stepping Out of Dad’s Shadow
Craig Phillips in Lists
Relationships with our dads can be complicated, as reflected in a collection of diverse, very worthy documentary films we've selected for Father's Day viewing consideration. All of the dads depicted…...
June 09, 2017
Trans Musicians Carving Their Own Identities [Updated June 2022]
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
By Craig Phillips and Independent Lens Staff Real Boy is the portrait of Bennett, who is undergoing gender reassignment surgery, and his mom's struggle to process the change. But it's…...
May 26, 2017
Memorial Day: Docs That Capture the Human Experience of War
Sean Axmaker in Lists
There is no shortage of documentaries on war. The subject fascinates us as history, as sociology, and as drama. Some documentaries chronicle history in great detail, some grapple with the…...
April 21, 2017
Earth Day Watch List: 17 Films About Sustainability and Climate Change
Jennie Z. Rose in Lists
We count on indie filmmakers to sniff out the conspicuous absences in mainstream media. Journalist and investigative reporter Amy Goodman once said, "The role of independent media is to go…...
March 27, 2017
Girl Power: The Original #SquadGoals (and Just #Goals in General)
826chi in Beyond the Films
In the Independent Lens documentary Ovarian Psycos, we're introduced to The Ovas — a chicanx (xicanx) feminist group who bike through the streets of East L.A. in honor of sisterhood. While…...
March 22, 2017
Nine Great Documentaries About Women Activists
Sharon Knolle in Lists
As Women’s History Month continues, we’re shining the spotlight on women activists who faced down injustice, pioneered paths for other women and girls, or have fought heroically trying to save…...
March 09, 2017
Meet the Trailblazers of Documentary Activism
Sean Axmaker in Film History
We think of the cinema of activism in documentary filmmaking as a relatively modern phenomenon, something first awakened in the 1960s and 1970s and popularized by the likes of Michael…...
February 14, 2017
10 Great Animated Documentaries
Noel Murray in Lists
Keith Maitland’s animated documentary TOWER has left critics and awards-voting bodies alike flummoxed as to how best to categorize it. This is a visionary work, no doubt, that uses voice-actors and…...
February 14, 2017
History or Hate: America’s Controversial Monuments to White Supremacy
826chi in Lists
The thing about claiming territory and property is that it takes up space, and taking up space literally makes a huge statement; it becomes a platform for discussing who built…...
February 13, 2017
TOWER Playlist: 1966 Music Soundscape
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
Pure and simple, 1966 was considered by many critics as one of the greatest years for popular music ever [see the Guardian’s “Was 1966 pop music greatest’s year?” and the…...
July 15, 2016
10 Reasons to Root for Olympic Boxer Claressa Shields
Independent Lens in Lists
Get in Claressa Shields' corner with 10 memorable T-Rex: Her Fight For Gold moments. 1. While her friends spent Friday nights partying, she logged long hours alone in the gym. …...