Blog

Singer Billie Holiday
Beyond the Films

February 19, 2020

Billie Holiday’s Searing “Strange Fruit” Still Has the Power to Startle

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Nick Dedina There are often false narratives we tell ourselves so that we can simplify, and beautify, the past and erase aspects of the present that we are uncomfortable…...

Painting of Matsya pulling a boat carrying Manu and Saptarishi during Pralaya
Beyond the Films

February 14, 2020

A Flood of Myths and Stories

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Lennlee Keep We Believe in Dinosaurs is an exploration of the scientific and historical veracity of the Bible and the construction of an authentic likeness of Noah's Ark in…...

Interviews

February 12, 2020

Religion, Science and Belief: Unearthing the Thorny Intersection

Craig Phillips in Beyond the Films

Filmmakers Monica Long Ross and Clayton Brown have long been fascinated by how science and culture mix--or don't mix--in America. In short, that relationship is complicated.  They directed and produced…...

GAI QI and her baby, in Leftover Women
Beyond the Films

February 05, 2020

The One-Child Policy Legacy on Women and Relationships in China

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Kristal Sotamayor The one-child policy was introduced to China in 1979, written into the national constitution in 1982, and subsequently ended in 2015. Over the 36 years of the…...

Xu Min, from Leftover Women, speaks to single men at a matchmaker event in China
Interviews

February 05, 2020

Filmmakers Follow Women in China Trying to Overcome Stigma of Being Single

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

Israeli filmmakers Shosh Shlam and Hilla Medalia have had films air on international television as well as here in the U.S. on HBO, MTV, Sundance, and PBS (Medalia has received…...

Interviews

February 03, 2020

How “Cooked” Evolved into an Investigation of the Disaster Underlying a Disaster

Craig Phillips in Interviews

Documentary filmmaker Judith Helfand is best known for her ability to take the dark worlds of chemical exposure, heedless corporate behavior and environmental injustice and make them personal, highly-charged and…...

Activist Jose
Interviews

January 22, 2020

Finding Common Ground: The Story of an Unlikely Chicago Alliance

Craig Phillips in Interviews

It takes an incredible amount of tenacity and belief in a project to stick with it for 14 years, but that's just how long it took for Ray Santisteban to…...

Blind Love

Blind Love follows four single, blind millennials in their quest for love. With assists from their eager circle of family and friends, these young men and women hope to find The One. Hailing from Florida, Maryland, New York, and Texas, with interests ranging from poker playing… Read More

Yusuf on the phone in Accept the Call
Interviews

January 14, 2020

Filmmaker Accepts the Call to Tell Story of a Father and Son Divided

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

Filmmaker Eunice Lau, who is originally from Singapore (and boy does she have a story to tell you here about the experience of showing her film back home), was once…...

American Nomads

As the cost of living rises across the United States, so too is the number of people who dwell in their vehicles. Some travel across the country looking for work and to fulfill the American Dream. Others never want to settle anywhere, happy to make a home for… Read More

Joe Bifelt holding his lead dog, Happy, before the start of the 2015 Open North American sled dog race, from ATTLA
Where Are They Now?

December 11, 2019

Still Mushing: An Update from Joe, George Attla’s Grandnephew

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

We are pleased that we could get Joe Bifelt, the grandnephew of legendary dogsled racer George Attla, to send us an update on his life since the film about George's…...

menorah
Lifestyle

December 10, 2019

9 Lights for Hanukkah: Finding Light in Dark Times

Sharon Knolle in Lifestyle

This Hanukkah, as millions light their menorahs and rededicate themselves to their family, their faith and their communities, we look for ways to find and share joy, light, healing, and…...