WORLD PREMIERE | Venezuela’s recent political upheavals are made vivid in A La Calle—meaning “to the street.” Covering multiple perspectives in the tradition of epic documentaries such as The Square or Winter on Fire, the film captures history unfolding over several years. Filmmakers Maxx Caicedo and Nelson G. Navarrete—Venezeulan himself—gain close access to Leopoldo López, whose arrest […]
The latest film from Oscar-winners Julia Reichert and Steve Bognar (American Factory , DOC NYC 2019) explores a pivotal but little remembered intersection of women’s rights and labor rights. In the early 1970s, secretaries and other female office workers were underpaid, undervalued, unable to advance, and often subject to sexual harassment. In the wake of […]
In 1978, Philadelphia’s police department conducted a violent siege on the communal home of the Black revolutionary group MOVE. Nine members of MOVE went to prison over the resultant death of a police officer, despite forensic mysteries in the case. Two of the prisoners were the parents of Mike Africa, Jr., who dedicated his life […]
State College, Pennsylvania, home to Penn State University, has long prided itself on its football program, lionizing its head coach, Joe Paterno. But when “Saint Joe” is caught up in the Jerry Sandusky scandal, the once-harmonious community splinters. With impressive access to family members and community residents who are still reeling from the accusations, Amir […]
In his breakthrough documentary Food Inc., director Robert Kenner investigated how corporations affect what we eat. Now he reveals how corporations affect what we think, exploring the shadow world of experts who stake claims contrary to scientific consensus. Their past efforts have spread confusion and delayed action over cigarettes and toxic chemicals. Now their main […]
Winner of the SXSW grand jury prize, The Great Invisible examines the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and its impact on fishermen, oilmen and survivors. Director Margaret Brown (The Order of Myths) brings a nuanced understanding of the American South to the film, paying attention to ecosystems of nature and society. […]
Katy Chevigny and Ross Kauffman’s breathtaking film chronicles the dangerous but life- affirming work performed by the Human Rights Watch Emergency Team, or E-Team, a compelling group of intrepid investigators willing to enter hostile territories to document crimes against humanity that might otherwise go unreported. Allowing outside filmmakers to follow them for the first time, […]
In early 2013, Oscar®-nominated director Laura Poitras started receiving encrypted e-mails from someone identifying himself as “citizen four,” who was ready to blow the whistle on the massive covert surveillance programs run by the NSA and other intelligence agencies. That June, she and reporter Glenn Greenwald flew to Hong Kong for the first of many […]
Following the passage of California’s controversial Proposition 8, which banned same-sex marriage, progressive David Boies and ultra-conservative Ted Olson, legendary foes who had faced off in Bush v. Gore, formed an unexpected legal partnership to fight for its overturn, with two same-sex couples serving as the opposition’s public face. Ben Cotner and Ryan White follow […]
Robert Drew, who died this year, led a company of trailblazers in observational documentary. One of the most striking films from this era is The Chair, which follows the attorney Louis Nizer as he attempts to save the prisoner Paul Crump from the electric chair. Drew was joined by Richard Leacock, Gregory Shuker, DA Pennebaker […]