Independent Lens

Indie Films Series / 8 Seasons

Authentic stories. Extraordinary people.

1h 16m / TV-PG

"Naughty School" | Tre Maison Dasan

2m 2s

In this excerpt from the film Tre Maison Dasan, bright 11-year-old Maison, who has been diagnosed with Asperger's, spends visitation day with his father in prison--a place he used to call "naughty school" before he realized it was a prison. His dad tries to get Maison to accept his beloved father isn't innocent, but their love for each other remains strong.

"We Need New Memories" | Tre Maison Dasan

1m 8s

In this excerpt from the film Tre Maison Dasan, troubled but wise-beyond-his-years teen Tre visits his incarcerated dad in prison where they bond over mutual experiences with probation and failed ankle monitors--and then realize they need new shared memories that don't revolve around criminality. "We need some fishing," Tre's dad says, laughing. "Because this is not normal."

Trailer | Tre Maison Dasan

30s

Told directly through the eyes of the children themselves, Tre Maison Dasan is an up-close and unfiltered look at the lives of three Rhode Island boys, each navigating childhood and adolescence with a parent in prison. Society writes these parents off as criminals, but in their hearts their children still see them as mom and dad.

Vote$ for Livestreamers | People's Republic of Desire

2m 24s

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens film People's Republic of Desire, despite often destitute circumstances, fans of the most famous livestreaming performers in China--like Big Li and Shen Man--spend loads of their own money to see them become number one. Dabao, a talent manager and wife of Big Li, tearfully wonders what he's done to deserve such fervent followers.

Trailer | People's Republic of Desire

30s

In an age where the power of technology helps us connect, are we as isolated as ever? People’s Republic of Desire exposes the baffling reality of how virtual relationships are replacing real-life human connections through China’s video-based social network YY––a hugely popular gathering place for over 300 million people in China.

Hale County This Morning, This Evening - Clip

2m 10s

In this excerpt from the Oscar-nominated Hale County This Morning, This Evening, Nate and his friends imagine a movie called "A World without Guns" in which police can only throw spears at suspects. Just some of the day-to-day moments in Hale County, Alabama.

Trailer | Hale County This Morning, This Evening

30s

RaMell Ross's Hale County This Morning, This Evening, one of the year's most critically acclaimed films, is a dreamy and intimate journey through the world of Hale County, Alabama, a richly detailed glimpse into life in America’s Black Belt.

Trailer | Black Memorabilia

30s

What does it mean when Americans rebuke racism yet hold on to nostalgic objects that embrace it? Black Memorabilia explores the world of racist material, both antique and new, that pushes demeaning representations of African Americans. From industrial China to the rural South to Brooklyn, the film shines a light on those who reproduce, consume--and reclaim--racially-charged items.

Elvis, Tupelo, and the American Dream | The King

2m 8s

In this excerpt from The King, filmmaker Eugene Jarecki goes to Tupelo, Mississippi in search of the childhood home of Elvis Presley's and ends up exploring the dilapidated state of the American Dream. After Jarecki finds the home young Elvis briefly lived in while his dad was in prison, neighbors talk about the town's class divide, and whether they think the American Dream is even achievable.

Trailer | The King | Independent Lens | PBS

30s

Forty years after the death of Elvis Presley, filmmaker Eugene Jarecki takes the King’s 1963 Rolls-Royce on a musical road trip across America. From Memphis to New York, Las Vegas, and beyond, the journey traces the rise and fall of Elvis as a metaphor for the country he left behind.

Charley Patton, Grandfather of Delta Blues | RUMBLE

2m 28s

Charley Patton was the "grandfather of Delta blues," a true legend--and part-Native American. He was a profound influence on blues musicians over the years as well as Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Jack White, Bonnie Raitt, and many others. You can hear the Native music influence in his sound. Learn more about him in this clip from RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World.

Taboo's Native Roots | RUMBLE

59s

"I grew up understanding my Mexican roots more than my Native roots," says Black Eyed Peas' rapper/singer/songwriter Taboo in this clip from the Independent Lens film RUMBLE. He learned about the other side of his heritage from his Shoshone grandmother, which helped him appreciate how his style was influenced by the whole mix.

RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World PBS Promo

30s

RUMBLE is the electric story of how Native American influence shaped blues, jazz, folk, and rock 'n' roll, a missing chapter in music history, including Link Wray -- the electric guitar pioneer whose titular instrumental hit was banned from the radio.

Kermit Ruffins Cooks Nutria | Rodents of Unusual Size

2m 19s

Renowned jazz musician--and chef--Kermit Ruffins and other famous local chefs try to convince New Orleans residents to appreciate their artful ways of cooking nutria, an unappealing "swamp rat" that is also an invasive species eating away at Louisiana wetlands. If anyone can find a way to make it tasty--and help the local ecosystem at the same time--it's these clever chefs.

Rodents of Unusual Size - Trailer

30s

Rodents of Unusual Size is a real-life horror "tail" about the various and eccentric methods Louisiana residents have employed to tackle a growing menace that lurks in the bayous and backwaters: hordes of monstrous 20-pound swamp rats known as nutria.

Man on Fire - Trailer

30s

In 2014, 79-year-old white Methodist minister drove to an empty parking lot in his old hometown of Grand Saline, Texas, and set himself on fire. He left a note on his car’s windshield calling the act his final protest against the virulent racism of the community and his country at large. Man on Fire uncovers the truth about the town’s past and what drove Moore to his shocking final act.

The Judge - Trailer

30s

Showing Shari’a law in a way we've never seen before--through the story of the first-ever female judge in Palestine’s religious courts--The Judge is a portrait of a remarkable woman that also provides rare insight into both Islamic law and gendered justice.

The Cleaners - Trailer

30s

"Delete...Ignore...Delete… Ignore…" Someone is out there censoring your social media feed. Do their decisions distort your understanding of the world as much as clever hoaxes and "fake news"? The Cleaners charts social media’s evolution from a shared vision of a global village to a dangerous web of fake news, extremism, and radicalization.

Dawnland - Trailer

30s

Dawnland is the untold story of Indigenous child removal through the government-endorsed truth and reconciliation commission investigating the devastating impact of Maine’s child welfare practices on the Wabanaki people. Dawnland offers a painful reminder that the traumatic legacy of forced child removal goes far back, but also shows getting to the heart of the truth can offer a flicker of hope.

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