Stories about facing authorities and the criminal justice system. (TOTAL RUNNING TIME: 77 MIN) Weedman | Director: Brian Scully A cannabis activist opens a marijuana-themed cafe across from Trenton’s City Hall to test the city’s weed laws—with unexpected consequences. (USA, 18 MIN) The Sunny Side Up | Director: Peter Kilmartin Both Sunny and Peter served on death row for […]
Bruce Franks Jr., a 34-year-old Ferguson activist and battle rapper who was elected to the overwhelmingly white and Republican Missouri House of Representatives, must overcome both personal trauma and political obstacles to pass a bill critical for his community. Courtesy of MTV. Co-presented by Film Fatales, NYWIFT & ROOFTOP FILMS
The story of New York lawyer David Drucker, who was pursued by J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI during the McCarthy era.
New Orleans teen Chasity is arrested after a family dispute.
NYC PREMIERE Ike White was a musical prodigy serving life in prison since age 19. His luck changed when he had the opportunity to record in prison the album Changin’ Times (1976) with WAR producer Jerry Goldstein. Decades later, filmmaker Daniel Vernon tracks down White out of prison, living in obscurity, and the story takes […]
NYC PREMIERE Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s latest film is a timely look at the deep roots of systemic inequalities that have made possible the ever-widening income gap that threatens the fabric of our democracy. Cultural critics, academics and other notables explore the gendered nature of core American values—with “masculine” traits like individualism, power and money prioritized over […]
NYC PREMIERE The effects of climate change on Africa’s Sahel region are devastating: desertification, famine, conflict and migration. Yet hope lies in the Great Green Wall, an ambitious reforestation project spanning the continent aimed at revitalizing ecosystems and restoring economies. In this story of resilience and self-determination executive produced by Fernando Meirelles, Malian musician/activist Inna […]
Acclaimed photographer and filmmaker Lauren Greenfield (The Queen of Versailles, Generation Wealth) continues her exploration of extreme wealth with the most political work of her career. Filmed over five years, this portrait of Imelda Marcos chronicles her efforts to exert control in the Philippines through support for President Rodrigo Duterte and the candidacy of her […]
Filipino mortician Orly manages and lives at a 24-hour funeral home, where he has a sobering perspective on the lives impacted by President Duterte’s “war on drugs.”
What has happened to the over 2,600 kids separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border under President Trump’s “zero tolerance” family separation policy?