Blog

Interviews

June 09, 2020

How Do You Sort Through 70,000 Videotapes?

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

The San Jose (CA) native, New York City-based filmmaker Matt Wolf is no stranger to having to comb through archival footage for his documentaries. His film Wild Combination, about the…...

Enrique and members of Toki Music School building with recyclable materials. From Eating Up Easter.
Interviews

May 20, 2020

Filmmakers Show the World the Real Easter Island, a Wakeup Call with Hope

Craig Phillips in Interviews

Sergio Mata'u Rapu has spent the last 15 years shooting and producing documentaries that have aired on History Channel, Travel Channel, National Geographic, and NOVA. Based in Minnesota, a very…...

Beach cleanup under way on Rapa Nui while the famous statues loom in background
Beyond the Films

May 12, 2020

Rapa Nui and Other Fragile Lands Rally Against Tourism Pollution

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Satu Runa In a story that begins with a heartfelt message to their infant son about the unique character of his ancestral home Rapa Nui (also known as Easter…...

Lynching scene in Within Our Gates (by Oscar Micheaux)
Beyond the Films

February 20, 2020

As American as the Blues: Lynching in Film and TV

Independent Lens in Beyond the Films

By Ade Adeniji Always in Season explores the history of lynching through the mysterious 2014 death of Lennon Lacy while also looking at historical reenactments of lynching, prompting some to…...

Filmmaker Jacqueline Olive
Interviews

February 20, 2020

Filmmaker Explores First Steps Toward Justice and Reconciliation

Craig Phillips in Behind the Films

Independent filmmaker Jacqueline Olive, who has worked in non-fiction filmmaking for years and co-directed and co-produced the award-winning hour-long documentary, Black to Our Roots (PBS WORLD), makes her feature documentary…...

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…...

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…...

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…...

An elderly George Attla rides a snowmobile
Interviews

December 09, 2019

Telling the Incredible True Story of a Dogsledding Legend

Craig Phillips in Interviews

Filmmaker Catharine Axley seeks stories of empowerment through subjects that defy expectations, and the lesser-known but remarkable story of George Attla certainly qualifies. Axley's film ATTLA, which won Best Feature Documentary at…...