Independent Lens

Indie Films Series / 8 Seasons

Authentic stories. Extraordinary people.

1h 25m / TV-14

Half the Sky: Sakena Yacoobi on Educating Women and Girls in

5m 50s / TV-PG

Sakena Yacoobi has made a difference in the lives of around 8.5 million people through the operation of learning facilities in Afghanistan over the course of twenty years. Sakena believes that, if properly equipped with the knowledge and confidence to act, the current generation of Afghani girls can fix the country's severe gender imbalances within just 5 to 10 years.

Half the Sky: Prostitution is the Absence of Choice

1m 40s / TV-PG

Women and girls account for 80 percent of the people trafficked across international borders each year, most often for sexual exploitation. Stripped of their basic human rights, women and girls are bought and sold, generating an estimated $27.8 billion of profit for their exploiters.

Half the Sky: A Kenyan Restauranteur Flourishes Through Micr

2m 18s / TV-PG

Olivia Wilde and Nick Kristof visit Joyce, a Kenyan woman who owns a restaurant in Nairobi. Joyce is a member of Jamii Bora, Kenya's largest microfinance organization and a powerful agent of change for the country's women. It provides loans to individuals, including former beggars, prostitutes, and the severely impoverished, who would be unable to pursue their ambitions without financing.

Half the Sky: Every 90 Seconds, a Mother Dies Giving Birth

1m 25s / TV-PG

All around the world, women are dying of causes which could have been prevented. Edna Adan, founder of a maternity hospital in Somaliland, discusses her backstory and what led her to become an agent of change in this Half the Sky Movement awareness campaign video.

Half the Sky: Violence Against Women is a Global Epidemic

1m 41s / TV-PG

A group of experts and advocates describe the global epidemic of gender-based violence, which strips women of their autonomy and forces them to live in constant fear of physical retribution. The phenomenon can seem insurmountable in post-conflict countries like Sierra Leone, but extraordinary women like Amie Kandeh are nevertheless determined to bring an end to these rampant abuses.

Half the Sky: Gender-based Violence in Sierra Leone

9m 45s / TV-PG

This educational module adapted from the documentary series Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide follows journalist Nicholas Kristof and actress Eva Mendes as they investigate the high incidence of rape and impunity in Sierra Leone, and meet change maker Amie Kandeh.

Half the Sky: Jane Ngori Turns a House into a Home in Kenya

7m 37s

Olivia Wilde and Nicholas Kristof arrive at Kaputei, some 60 KM from Nairobi to see the housing community set up by Jamii Bora. They are both initially skeptical about what this area can provide since it is so far for the women to travel to earn a living. However, after seeing Jane Ngori's house and celebrating her son Moses's 9th birthday, they change their minds.

Half the Sky: Creating Hope within Africa's Largest Slum

9m 52s / TV-PG

Nick Kristof and Olivia Wilde venture through Nairobi to reach Kibera, one of the largest slums in the world. Here, Kennedy Odede and Jessica Posner have worked tirelessly to promote the cause of women, using schools, clinics, and community services to combat Kibera's extreme poverty and habitual neglect toward girls.

Half the Sky: Breaking the Cycle of Oppression with Educatio

1m 43s / TV-PG

Gabrielle Union, Olivia Wilde, Sheryl WuDunn and Nicholas Kristof discuss solutions to the most pressing problems facing women: maternal mortality, gender-based violence, sex trafficking and forced prostitution. Women are not the problem, they are the solution. Education and economic empowerment are the ladder to a better life for women, their families and communities.

Half the Sky: Maternal Mortality in Somaliland

9m 45s / TV-PG

This educational module adapted from the documentary series Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide follows journalist Nicholas Kristof and actress Diane Lane as they investigate the high maternal mortality rate in Somaliland and meet change maker Edna Adan.

Half the Sky: Why Do Mothers Die in Somaliland?

8m 53s / TV-PG

Hinda Hassan's death was needless and Diane Lane and Nicholas Kristof talk to Nimo, the midwife who helped her to find out what happened. In a country with no family planning and no trained doctors performing C-Sections, Hinda's death was something that would should happen in the 21st century.

Half the Sky: One Girl's Long Road to School and Safety in S

5m / TV-PG

Agnes Libbi Smith lost her father during the civil war in Sierra Leone and her mother when she was 13 years old. Finding herself homeless, Agnes was physically abused and raped by a teacher who promised her an education. Finally breaking free and seeking help at the Rainbo Center with Amie Kandeh and the International Rescue Committee, Agnes hopes to become a doctor and help others.

Half the Sky: Education in Vietnam

10m 38s / TV-PG

This educational module adapted from the documentary series Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide follows journalist Nicholas Kristof and actress Gabrielle Union as they meet Room to Read founder John Wood in Vietnam, and meet two girls who have become beneficiaries of his education program in that country.

Stanley Tucci to Host New Season of Independent Lens

49s / TV-PG

Acclaimed actor and filmmaker Stanley Tucci will host the upcoming season of Independent Lens, which moves to Mondays at 10 PM on PBS this fall (check local listings). Tucci is the latest in the distinguished company of Independent Lens hosts, including Mary-Louise Parker, America Ferrera, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Susan Sarandon, Terrence Howard, Edie Falco, Angela Bassett, and Don Cheadle.

Community Classroom Makes Learning Cinematic

1m 4s

Community Classroom brings innovative media resources to educators in high schools, colleges, and other youth-serving organizations to provide educators with access to high quality video content and standards aligned curriculum that supports development of critical thinking and writing skills, media literacy, media creation, and opportunities to engage with local service organizations.

Half the Sky: Rape is Civil War's Legacy in Sierra Leone

5m 10s / TV-PG

Dr. Olabisi Cole works at the International Rescue Committee’s Rainbo Centers in Freetown and Kenema, Sierra Leone, providing medical care for girls and women who have been victims of sexual violence. Dr. Cole lived in Sierra Leone during the civil war. She discusses how rape and violence became part of the mainstream culture during that time period. Dr. Cole also helps lead Girls With a Future.

Strong!: Shopping's a Drag for a Power Lifter

1m 45s / TV-PG

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens documentary, Strong!, weightlifter Cheryl Haworth goes clothes shopping with a friend, but has trouble finding anything she likes. Striving to be the strongest woman in the world seemingly puts her at odds with conventional standards of beauty.

Strong: Visualizing Weightlifting as Poetry in Motion

5m 30s / TV-PG

Forget everything you think you know about strong women! In this companion video to the Independent Lens documentary Strong!, filmmaker Julie Wyman talks about what inspired her to profile former Olympic weightlifter Cheryl Haworth, who gives "girl time" new meaning as she demonstrates how to raise the bar ... the competitive weightlifting way.

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