Blog

Students at the entrance to Lowell High School
Beyond the Films

May 02, 2022

A Wild Two Years Since ‘Try Harder’: What You Need to Know About Lowell High School

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Holly McDede Bay Area filmmaker Debbie Lum’s documentary Try Harder! captures the unnerving pressure facing seniors at San Francisco’s elite Lowell High School, where students need high grades and…...

are you smarter than a high schooler? graphic looking like a school bubble test with pencil
Test Your Knowledge

April 28, 2022

A Hard “Try Harder!” Quiz: Are You Smarter than a High Schooler?

Independent Lens in Test Your Knowledge

Out of all the facts and figures that you were ever tested on, how much did you actually retain? This quiz may prove "not much!" Test yourself on actual questions…...

illustrated graphic of girl weighted down by red backpack. credit: Getty Images/Malte Mueller.
Interviews

April 27, 2022

How Today’s High School Students Face High Pressure in a Grind Culture

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Gail Cornwall Christina Zhang, 16, averages a couple hours of free time a day, but it’s hard to watch Netflix. “The whole time you’re thinking about, ‘Oh, what if…...

Sophia at Graduation, happy in cap and gown
Interviews

April 22, 2022

Telling Asian American Stories That Resonate: Filmmaker Explores Why These High School Students Are Stressed Out

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

During her long time living in the San Francisco Bay Area, filmmaker Debbie Lum was greatly influenced by working as an editor for documentarian Spencer Nakasako. Lum as a youth…...

Mayan healer Josefa Kirvin Kulix, in AWARE
Interviews

April 18, 2022

Investigating the Mysteries of Consciousness

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

AWARE: Glimpses of Consciousness is the fourth film collaboration between Eric Black and Frauke Sandig, who are based in San Francisco and Berlin respectively, but managed to collaborate on a…...

Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego show poster with the cast including the Chief
Watch Video

March 05, 2022

Remember These Classic PBS Educational TV Shows?

Independent Lens in Lifestyle

[Carmen Sandiego image courtesy producer Howard Blumenthal] By Ade D. Adeniji Sesame Street. Magic School Bus. Mister Rogers' Neighborhood. Reading Rainbow. Millennials and Gen Xers were lucky enough to come…...

Model of a classroom safety drill, with figurines of teacher and students and a model of a safe room
Interviews

February 08, 2022

What Americans Will Do to Feel Safe in Schools

Craig Phillips in Beyond the Films

What is the cost of feeling "safe" in American classrooms in an era when mass shootings have become more commonplace? The documentary Bulletproof takes a unique vérité approach in exploring…...

Try Harder!

At Lowell High School, San Francisco’s academic pressure cooker, the kids are stressed out. With a majority Asian American student body, high-achieving seniors share their dreams and anxieties about getting into a top university. But is college worth the grind?… Read More

A Reckoning in Boston

What happens when you discover that your assumptions are flawed? A white filmmaker starts his academic inquiry by documenting low-income, adult students of color at the Clemente Course in Boston. Over time, he comes to terms with his own complicity in racism. Alongside the students, a unique filmmaking collaboration forms… Read More

AWARE: Glimpses of Consciousness

What is the science behind consciousness? Six brilliant researchers from around the world—a brain scientist, a plant behaviorist, a healer, a philosophy professor, a psychedelics scientist, and a Buddhist monk—take you on a mind-blowing quest to investigate this seemingly unsolvable mystery. Read More

Bulletproof

What is the cost of feeling safe? In an era of mass shootings, lockdown drills and teacher firearms training are as much a part of life as homecoming dances and basketball practice. Take a provocative look at fear, violence, and what Americans will do to feel safe in schools. Read More