America ReFramed

Indie Films Series / 7 Seasons

America ReFramed brings to life compelling stories, personal voices and experiences that illuminate the contours of our ever-changing country. Since 2012, the series has premiered 170 films - more than half helmed by female makers and a third credited to BIPOC makers - centering stories of the LGBTQ community, people with disabilities, the formerly incarcerated, veterans, immigrants and more.

Watch Latest: S12 E6

1h 12m / TV-PG

La Manplesa: An Uprising Remembered | Trailer

3m 29s / TV-PG

On May 5th, 1991, people took to the streets of Washington D.C.’s Mount Pleasant neighborhood to protest the police shooting of a young Salvadoran man, Daniel Gomez. Through testimony, song, poetry, and street theater, LA MANPLESA: An Uprising Remembered weaves together the collective memory of one of D.C.’s first barrios and dives into the roots of the '91 rebellion.

La Manplesa: An Uprising Remembered | Preview

30s / TV-PG

On May 5th, 1991, people took to the streets of Washington D.C.’s Mount Pleasant neighborhood to protest the police shooting of a young Salvadoran man, Daniel Gomez. Through testimony, song, poetry, and street theater, LA MANPLESA: An Uprising Remembered weaves together the collective memory of one of D.C.’s first barrios and dives into the roots of the '91 rebellion.

Any Given Day | The Vicious Cycle of Mental Health

1m 50s / TV-PG

Good days, bad days and everything in between is how living with mental health can be especially without support and with stigma. Dimitar's good days and then turn to substance abuse and criminality represent a common cycle of victory and defeat.

Any Given Day | State of Schizophrenia

1m 13s / TV-PG

Dimitar is writing about what he knows and experiences. His self-published book, State of Schizophrenia, shows that, with support, a person living with mental health can envision and achieve.

Any Given Day | Chicago's Mental Health Court

1m 50s / TV-PG

In Chicago's Cook County, people living with mental health have an option to participate in a mental health court program over jail time. One of those individuals is Daniel who is hoping to thrive with the support and resources of the program and its judge...but there is also much work to be done.

Any Given Day | Searching for a Home

39s / TV-PG

Housing in America is at a crisis point. And for single mothers of color like Angela, who is living with mental health, finding a safe, affordable space for her and her son is proving difficult.

Any Given Day | The Storm That Is Depression

1m 21s / TV-PG

"It's like being in a fog." Filmmaker Margaret Byrne, who is documenting the mental health experiences of three people in Chicago, turns the camera on herself, exposing her trials & tribulations and the uncertainty living with mental health is like.

Any Given Day | Preview

30s / TV-PG

Filmmaker Margaret Byrne follows three formerly incarcerated Chicagoans as they manage their respective mental illnesses while searching for stability in their families, friendships, jobs and housing. While documenting the challenges that are faced at the intersections of a punitive carceral system, poverty and substance use, Byrne reckons with her own history of mental illness.

Any Given Day | Trailer

2m 1s / TV-PG

Filmmaker Margaret Byrne follows three formerly incarcerated Chicagoans as they manage their respective mental illnesses while searching for stability in their families, friendships, jobs and housing. While documenting the challenges that are faced at the intersections of a punitive carceral system, poverty and substance use, Byrne reckons with her own history of mental illness.

Chinatown Rising | Pam Tau Lee: A Legend in Social Justice

1m 10s / TV-PG

Pam Tau Lee, an activist who has for decades fought for social justice, recalls her experience during the 1977 eviction at the International Hotel in San Francisco's Chinatown. She, alongside many others, were part of a years-long campaign against neighborhood encroachment.

Chinatown Rising | Harry Chuck: Activist and Man of Faith

1m 4s / TV-PG

Meet Harry Chuck, one of the filmmakers of CHINATOWN RISING and the subject of the film. An active member in San Francisco's early Asian American movement, the reverend was a witness to what happened to many of the community's young residents.

Chinatown Rising | The Fight for Housing in San Francisco

1m 15s / TV-PG

In San Francisco's Chinatown, the housing for its residents were less than desirable. For activists in the community, they refused to sit idly by the HUD's (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) devastating decision on a project that would have renewed the neighborhood.

Chinatown Rising | The Chinese Six Companies

2m 59s / TV-PG

Harry Chuck talks about the work of the Chinese Six Companies, a group of Chinese organizations that would advocate for the residents and businesses of Chinatowns around the country. They also wielded their power to deal with governments at the local, state and national levels.

Chinatown Rising | Preview

30s / TV-PG

Weaving together never-before-seen archival footage and photographs, CHINATOWN RISING reveals a deeply personal portrait of a San Francisco neighborhood in transition. Chinatown activists of the 1960s reflect on their years as young residents waging battles for bilingual education, tenants’ rights and ethnic studies curriculum that would shape their community and nation.

Chinatown Rising | Trailer

1m 33s / TV-PG

Weaving together never-before-seen archival footage and photographs, CHINATOWN RISING reveals a deeply personal portrait of a San Francisco neighborhood in transition. Chinatown activists of the 1960s reflect on their years as young residents waging battles for bilingual education, tenants’ rights and ethnic studies curriculum that would shape their community and nation.

Geographies of Kinship | Belonging When Adopted

2m 50s / TV-PG

LenaKim Arctaedius and her sisters were adopted in a loving family in Sweden. Her parents were aware of what it meant to raise and protect Korean children in a country not familiar with people of Asian descent. How does this affect children's identity and sense of belonging?

Geographies of Kinship | Abandoned, Adopted

1m 7s / TV-PG

How did adopted children from Korea find their forever family? Since the Korean War, the country's global adoption program has seen an estimated 200,000 adoptees like Estelle Cooke-Sampson move overseas. But what impact has this had on South Korea, its policies and society?

Geographies of Kinship | I Didn't Even Know My Name

1m 15s / TV-PG

For Estelle Cooke-Sampson, a Black-Korean adoptee, her beginnings are marked with questions. Many Korean adoptees like Cooke-Sampson are now searching for answers in their home country about who they are, where they come from and the family they may have.

Geographies of Kinship | The "Babylift"

2m 38s / TV-PG

Harry and Bertha Holt believed it their mission to save Korean children, especially of mixed race, by bringing them to the U.S. for adoption. But the legacy of their work has not always been viewed as positive by both social workers then and the adopted as adults now.

Geographies of Kinship | Trailer

1m 38s / TV-PG

GEOGRAPHIES OF KINSHIP weaves together the complex personal histories of four adult adoptees born in South Korea with the rise of the country’s global adoption program. Raised in foreign families, each adoptee sets out on a journey to reconnect with their roots, mapping the geographies of kinship that bind them to a homeland they never knew.

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