Independent Lens

Indie Films Series / 8 Seasons

Authentic stories. Extraordinary people.

52m 3s / TV-PG

A Fragile Trust: Howell Raines, Change Agent

2m 19s / TV-PG

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary A Fragile Trust, former New York Times executive editor Howell Raines explains how he saw himself as a change agent who had to “respond aggressively to the technological revolution that was overtaking newspapers.” The clip also features author Seth Mnookin (Hard News) and Jayson Blair on how Raines’ edict may have lead to subsequent issues.

Muscle Shoals: When Percy Sledge Made it Big

58s / TV-PG

In this clip from the Independent Lens documentary Muscle Shoals, soul singer Percy Sledge recounts how he went from working (and singing) on a cotton field and in a hospital to singing in an Elks Club to being discovered by a DJ and finally making it big, starting with recordings made at FAME Studios.

See the Preview for Muscle Shoals

1m / TV-PG

Muscle Shoals, Alabama is the unlikely breeding ground for some of America's most creative and defiant music, and at its heart is Rick Hall who founded FAME Studios. Overcoming crushing poverty and tragedy, Hall brought black and white together in a cauldron of racial hostility to create music for generations.

The Trials of Muhammad Ali: Inspired By the Greatest To Be H

4m 15s / TV-PG

In a boxing gym in San Francisco, Muhammad Ali continues to inspire. Meet National Boxing Champion and US Olympic hopeful Nargis Shaghasi, an Afghan American female boxer whose success inside and outside of the ring come from bridging her passion and determination for boxing and culture.

Trials of Muhammad Ali: Confronted and Redeemed

/ TV-PG

In this opening excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary Trials of Muhammad Ali, the famed boxer appears via satellite on Eamonn Andrews U.K. talk show in 1968, where he's confronted by David Susskind, a U.S. TV host, who calls Ali "a disgrace to his country and a convicted felon." This is contrasted with a more recent moment of redemption: Ali receiving the Medal of Freedom in 2005.

Trials of Muhammad Ali: "Why Are We Called Negroes?"

23s / TV-PG

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary Trials of Muhammad Ali, "Captain Sam," a minister in the Nation of Islam in Miami, recalls his first meeting with the famed boxer. Ali, inspired by Malcolm X, asked rhetorically, "Why are we called Negroes why's everyone else making progress and yet we lag so far behind?"

Coming Soon to Independent Lens: Trials of Muhammad Ali

30s / TV-PG

A story of the famed boxer's toughest bout of all: his battle to overturn the prison sentence he received for refusing U.S. military service. The film explores Ali's exile years when he was banned from boxing and found himself in the crosshairs of conflicts concerning race, religion, and wartime dissent.

Brothers Hypnotic: An Unyielding Commitment to Excellence

1m 10s / TV-PG

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary Brothers Hypnotic, the band brothers recite the series of commitments and values which preoccupy them. We then see several of them dutifully practicing their horns separately.

See the Preview for Brothers Hypnotic

30s / TV-PG

Not-always-willing subjects of a utopian family experiment, the eight men of the Hypnotic Brass Ensemble were forged into a band as kids by their father, jazz maverick Phil Cohran. Now making their way on the streets and in the music business, they test their father's ideals against their own brotherly vision.

Brothers Hypnotic: The Principle of Simplicity

1m 52s / TV-PG

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary Brothers Hypnotic, the brothers discuss how their father, Phil Cohran, taught them the importance of long tones in playing horns, to play one note as steady as possible, “the principle of simplicity.” We also seem them playing their horns outside, magically.

Brothers Hypnotic: Clef the Trombonist

1m 1s / TV-PG

This excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary Brothers Hypnotic, Seba aka “Clef,” tells us how he started playing the trombone when he was 4 years old, taught by his father Phil Cohran. He demonstrates how he learned to properly use the horn’s mouthpiece as a boy, until he was able to achieve even tone.

Medora: Coach Keeps the Faith

1m 3s / TV-PG

In this clip from the Independent Lens documentary Medora, we watch the struggling Medora High basketball team lose another game but get a pep talk from their coach, Justin Gilbert, about how proud he is and about how they do have talent. "We're gonna get better," he promises. "I'll never lose faith in you guys."

Medore: Basketball in a Poor Town

58s / TV-PG

In this clip from the Independent Lens documentary Medora, we watch Chaz Cowles, one of the students featured in the film, bike around his economically devastated town and tell us about how hard-hit Medora has been in recent years. "Other schools don't expect nothing from us," he says. "Medora's been in the gutter."

See the Preview for Medora

30s / TV-PG

Medora follows the down-but-not-out Medora Hornets, capturing the players’ stories on and off the court as they seek to avoid another winless season. Medora is an in-depth, deeply personal look at small-town life, a thrilling, underdog basketball story, and an inspiring tale of a community refusing to give up hope despite brutal odds stacked against them.

Coming Soon to Independent Lens: Medora

2m 20s / TV-PG

Medora follows the down-but-not-out Medora Hornets, capturing the players’ stories on and off the court as they seek to avoid another winless season. Medora is an in-depth, deeply personal look at small-town life, a thrilling, underdog basketball story, and an inspiring tale of a community refusing to give up hope despite brutal odds stacked against them.

All of Me: Taking a Chance on Surgery

1m 34s / TV-PG

In this clip from the Independent Lens documentary All of Me, the heaviest of the Girls, Zsalynn worries about her daughter's life and future which is a crucial reason she wants the weight-loss surgery. Meanwhile, Judy nervously heads to the hospital for her own surgery.

Coming Soon to Independent Lens: All Of Me

2m 17s / TV-PG

A group of women friends who met via the Austin chapter of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance and have tried every diet and diet pill, go through weight-loss surgery in an effort to lose hundreds of pounds. The experience presents a host of issues and consequences, some they never could have imagined.

See the Preview for All of Me

30s / TV-PG

A group of women friends who met via the Austin chapter of the National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance and have tried every diet and diet pill, go through weight-loss surgery in an effort to lose hundreds of pounds. The experience presents a host of issues and consequences, some they never could have imagined.

All of Me: Big Beautiful Women

1m 13s / TV-PG

In this clip from the Independent Lens documentary All of Me, Judy explains what the BBW (Big Beautiful Women) gathering is and how before she went she had no idea she was the object of so many men's fetishes. She then emphasizes how her marriage to Marty differs from that; for one thing, "he didn't ask me my bra size.”

All of Me: HeavyWeight Yoga

3m 52s / TV-PG

In this video extra from the Independent Lens documentary All of Me, the Austin “Girls” take a yoga class led by Abby Lentz, founder of HeavyWeight Yoga. She teaches the “three A’s,” Awareness, Acceptance, and Affection.

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