Independent Lens

Indie Films Series / 8 Seasons

Authentic stories. Extraordinary people.

1h 16m / TV-PG

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.

Getting the Fire Call | Wildland

2m 1s

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens film Wildland, a group of newly trained wildland firefighters working long, tiring hours in the backcountry are starved for more adventure. But they should be careful what they wish for. Suddenly, they get the call.

Wildland - Trailer

30s

Filmed during two recent wildfire seasons, Wildland is a sweeping yet deeply personal account of a wildland firefighting crew as they struggle with fear, loyalty, dreams, and demons. This is the story of ordinary people with nothing left to lose — as they trudge through an unforgiving face a test of mind, body, and spirit.

Independent Lens 2018-19 Season - Promo

1m

"Everything above our heads and below our feet, we're all connected to." This season, from fall to spring, Independent Lens presents a new group of award-winning films that will thrust viewers into the heart of conversations in the diverse national neighborhood that is America.

Served Like a Girl - Hope and Andrea - Clip

3m

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens film Served Like a Girl, Hope Garcia, who struggles with PTSD after serving in the Navy, pleads with the Ms. Veteran America competition to let her stay after violating a rule posing for risque pictures for a photo shoot. Meanwhile Sgt. Andrea Waterbury leaves her kids in the care of her two ex-husbands to go prepare for a dance routine in the competition.

Served Like a Girl - Trailer

30s

Served Like a Girl is a powerful and poignant look at a group of diverse female veterans as they transition from active duty to civilian life after serving tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. Struggling with PTSD, homelessness, and other traumas, these inspiring women find ways to adapt to the challenges they face through participation in the “Ms. Veteran America” competition.

ACORN and the Firestorm - Trailer

30s

For 40 years, community organizing group ACORN sought to empower marginalized communities. Its critics, though, believed ACORN promoted government waste and ineffective activism. These competing perceptions exploded nationally in 2009, fueled by a YouTube video made by undercover activists. ACORN and the Firestorm goes beyond the 24-hour news cycle, cutting to the heart of the political divide.

No Man's Land - Trailer

30s

With unfettered access, filmmaker David Byars gives a detailed, on-the-ground account of the 2016 standoff between protesters occupying Oregon’s Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and federal authorities. No Man’s Land documents the occupation from inception to demise and tells the story of those on the inside of this movement, attempting to uncover what draws Americans to the edge of revolution.

True Conviction - Trailer

30s

After serving a combined 60 years in prison for crimes they did not commit, three recently exonerated Texans join forces to form an unlikely investigative team, on a mission to help wrongfully convicted prisoners obtain freedom like they did. In True Conviction, brotherly bonds are formed out of shared hardships — lengthy prison sentences in a state that executes more inmates than any other.

The Kansas Experiment: Part III

6m 6s

The "Kansas experiment" refers to how Kansas Governor Sam Brownback referred to the drastic tax cuts (the largest in the state's history) he signed into law in 2012 after his state was emerging from a recession. In the final part of a 3-part documentary series on the fallout from the tax plan five years later, we learn more about how the "experiment" affected local businesses, with mixed results.

The Kansas Experiment: Part II

5m 47s

The "Kansas experiment" is how Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback referred to the drastic tax cuts (the largest in the state's history) he signed into law in 2012. In Part II of a three-part short documentary series on the fallout from this tax plan five years later, we learn about how the "experiment" affected health care from the perspective of employees at Topeka's municipal zoo and Stormont Hospital.

Look & See: Wendell Berry's Kentucky - Trailer

30s

Look & See: Wendell Berry’s Kentucky is a portrait of the changing landscapes and shifting values of rural America through the voice of writer, farmer, and activist Wendell Berry. Centered in his native Henry County, Kentucky, Look & See is an elegy to a lost way of life that was once the bedrock of America--the culture of agriculture.

What Lies Upstream - Trailer

30s

In the unsetting exposé What Lies Upstream, investigative filmmaker Cullen Hoback travels to West Virginia to study the unprecedented loss of clean water for over 300,000 Americans in the 2014 Elk River chemical spill. He uncovers a shocking failure of regulation from both state and federal agencies and a damaged political system where chemical companies often write the laws that govern them.

The Art of the Shine - Trailer

30s

For the "shiners" in the joyous and quirky film The Art of the Shine, shining shoes is a calling and a passion, a way to be one’s own boss and connect with other people from all walks of life. From New York to Toronto, from Paris and La Paz, travel the world for an inside look at a forgotten profession.

The Kansas Experiment: Part I

4m 48s

An "experiment" is how Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback referred to the drastic tax cuts (the largest in the state's history) he signed into law in 2012 after his state was emerging from a recession. In Part I of a three-part short documentary series on the fallout from the experiment, we learn about how it affected education in Kansas, including some schools that were particularly hard-hit.

The Art of the Shine - The Sober Shoeshine Gang - Clip

2m 44s

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens film The Art of the Shine, Kevin, Jes, and Kealani, partners in a New York-based The Shoeshine Guild, talk about why they love the business, and the art, of shining shoes. Kevin started the company to create a supportive work environment for fellow alcoholics, and Jes, who finds shining much more fun and relaxing than her time working at a bank.

When God Sleeps - Trailer

30s

When God Sleeps is the story of Iranian musician Shahin Najafi's stand for freedom of expression, after he was forced into hiding when hardline clerics issue a fatwa for his death, incensed by a rap song focusing on human rights. Despite the risks to his life every time he performs on stage, Shahin refuses to stop, even with a $100,000 bounty on his head.

When God Sleeps - Living on the Run - Clip

3m 6s

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens film When God Sleeps, Iranian musician Shahin Najafi, who is forced into hiding after hardline clerics issue a fatwa for his death, fears a car he has entered with a friend may be rigged with a bomb. Najafi may reside in Europe now but lives every day in fear--even if that doesn't stop him from performing in public.

Dolores - Trailer

30s

With intimate and unprecedented access, Peter Bratt's Dolores tells the story of Dolores Huerta, among the most important, yet least-known, activists in American history. Co-founder of the first farmworkers union with Cesar Chavez, she tirelessly led the fight for racial and labor justice, becoming one of the most defiant feminists of the 20th century.

Dolores - Young Dolores Huerta Takes on Sacramento - Clip

1m 18s

In this excerpt from the Independent Lens film Dolores, we see how activist Dolores Huerta, when just starting out as a young community organizer in 1959, quickly made a name for herself as a lobbyist and fierce advocate for Latinos, immigration rights and labor justice. Her dedication helped get key legislation passed in Sacramento, at a time when California legislature was all white males.

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