September 15, 2023
Short Film “Folk Frontera” Shows the Culture of Life on the Border
Independent Lens in Behind the Films
By Ivonne Spinoza Alejandra Vasquez and Sam Osborn’s Folk Frontera is a border-set tale, expertly portraying the beauty and heartbreak that comes with living on the U.S.-Mexico border. Connecting two…...
November 07, 2022
“I Want to Move, I Want to Embrace Change”: Kelsey Peterson’s Journey to Dance Again
Independent Lens in Behind the Films
By Xian Horn Kelsey Peterson and I have had very different experiences of disability—I was born with cerebral palsy, and she became disabled as an adult. But watching her film…...
November 01, 2022
“Everybody’s Voice Is Unique”: Disability in the Performing Arts
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
By Allison Kirkland Kelsey Peterson's journey in Move Me will resonate with anyone who has undergone change and found something different but just as beautiful on the other side of…...
Folk Frontera
Far West Texas is a place where local folklore looms as large as the landscape. Two fronteriza women—one a public radio music show host, the other a Mariachi and folklórico dancer—live in two cultures at the same time, as they struggle to find their place in the vast Chihuahuan Desert. Read More
When I’m Her
Michael Cusumano was a luminary figure at American Ballet Theatre in New York, and had a stellar career ahead of him. But trauma from his past prevented him from fully realizing his artistic and professional potential. Over time, he finds refuge and liberation by assuming an alter ego:… Read More
The Dancing Man of L.A.
69-year-old Howard Mordoh is a retired clinical laboratory scientist, a southern California native, and possibly the world’s biggest concert enthusiast. Self-described as a “professional audience,” Howard has been a notorious fixture of the Los Angeles music scene for decades, attending five to eight concerts per week since the 70s… Read More
March 06, 2020
“Is Attraction Different in the Absence of Sight?”
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
By Kemberlie Spivey Australian-born independent filmmaker Patricia Zagarella has been creating documentaries for over ten years and co-produced the Emmy-award winning documentary Baring It All. That film followed fashion photographer…...
March 30, 2018
Censored Iranian Artists, Poets and Musicians Threatened with Exile
Independent Lens in Beyond the Films
[Note: Please enjoy this guest essay on Iranian artists and censorships, in conjunction with the broadcast premiere of When God Sleeps, by artist and game creator Kurosh ValaNejad. See more…...
February 06, 2016
Nelson George Captures the Poise of Misty Copeland to Tell a Ballerina’s Tale
Independent Lens in Behind the Films
Author, filmmaker, television producer, and critic Nelson George may have worn a lot of hats in his long career, but his love for music has been constant throughout. He's published numerous non-fiction…...
A Ballerina’s Tale
Few dancers reach the elite level of ballet; of that already small number only a fraction are black women. Misty Copeland shattered those barriers in 2015, making history as the first African American principal dancer with the prestigious American Ballet Theatre (ABT). A Ballerina’s Tale intimately… Read More
Kumu Hina
A native Hawaiian mahu, or transgender, woman uses traditional culture to create a place in the middle where every student is accepted. Despite the respect and admiration she’s achieved in her community, Hina still longs for true love. Read More