Independent Lens

Indie Films Series / 8 Seasons

Authentic stories. Extraordinary people.

1h 16m / TV-PG

American Nomads, Episode 1

5m 24s

Bob Wells lives in a refurbished van. After hitting a new low in the wake of a divorce, with no money to lean on, Bob found a new lease on life when he hit the road in his van for the last ten years, reaching celebrity status from his popular YouTube channel where he shares how-to’s and inspiration for the van-dwelling set.

alter-NATIVE: Kitchen, Episode 6

8m 8s

All three Indigenous chefs featured in alter-NATIVE: Kitchen come together to prepare a multi-course meal of Native cuisine for a select group of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Los Angeles, from Brian's agave-roasted rabbit tacos to Kalā's imu-cooked kalua pork to Hillel's painted like a Pawnee horse black bean salad. And just wait til you get to these talented chefs' dessert trio.

alter-NATIVE: Kitchen, Episode 5

5m 9s

Seattle-based chef Hillel Echo-Hawk focuses on traditional Pawnee foods, before Columbus and colonization, which means no dairy, no chicken, no processed sugar. Her all-Native catering company prepares for its largest gig ever, but after a late night of work, zero sleep, and everything going wrong, will Hillel and her team be able to pull the event off?

alter-NATIVE: Kitchen, Episode 4

5m 45s

Kalā Domingo, a culinary student in Hawaii, cooks with his caterer father for an Indigenous conference in Maui and a reception in Oahu, where they make dishes like Hō'i'o/Pohole salad, 'uala (Hawaiian sweet potato), kimchi, a delicious version of traditional poi, and a poke using fresh local ingredients. Will father and son butt heads in a busy, crowded kitchen, or make it happen?

alter-NATIVE: Kitchen, Episode 3

6m 6s

In traditional Hawaiian culture, it was important for food to take you closer to the Gods. Come to Oahu, Hawai'i, where young chef Kalā Domingo, a culinary student who works for his caterer father, gives Native Hawaiian kids a taste of this godly, traditional food, showing them where their food comes from and making the whole pig come together in an Imu, an underground steam cooker.

alter-NATIVE: Kitchen, Episode 2

5m 48s

Traveling chef Brian Yazzie brings Native cuisine back home to the Navajo Nation in Arizona. There he looks for truly Indigenous ingredients, as even "classic" Native comfort foods like fry bread have colonizer origins. Brian plans to cook for just friends and family but when word spreads and suddenly he's prepping for a large group of curious community elders, how will Brian impress them?

alter-NATIVE: Kitchen, Episode 1

5m 30s

Brian Yazzie, a Diné/Navajo traveling chef, does presentations demonstrating Native cooking across the country while mentoring Native youth. Brian uses modern techniques with Indigenous ingredients, prepping amazing dishes like sumac duck confit with acorn squash, mushroom and sunflower shoots, turnips and sunchoke puree, sweetgrass-infused beet puree, and his very popular wild rice bowl.

Should We Kid or Not? Episode 5

7m 59s

What's it mean to be childfree by choice, compared to ending up childless? Frequently worrying about how his life would be "over" if he had kids, Cameron had panic attacks when almost becoming a parent. Meanwhile, Sarah didn't really want children until her late '30s and then tried unsuccessfully, before finding herself at odds with the fertility industry and a support group.

Should We Kid or Not? Episode 4

8m 46s

Tasha, a single 50-year-old woman going through in vitro fertilization, debates Nikki, a 27-year old mother who got pregnant as a teen--and at the time thought she'd made a huge mistake. Nikki's not gonna lie, she thinks Tasha may be making a mistake, too, emphasizing the energy needed to raise kids. Can you be either "too old" or "too young" to have children? Listen to these ladies hash it out.

Should We Kid or Not? Episode 3

8m 45s

A same-sex couple shares their surrogacy journey and parenting story with Cristino, a 24-year-old gay man who isn't sure if he wants kids. Jeff and Tom prod Cristino by asking "would you have kids to save your relationship?" But Jeff also flashes back to his own youth, wondering whether having the full "gay experience" was necessary before settling down into fatherhood.

Should We Kid or Not? Episode 2

8m 12s

Kelsey, a single, bisexual, childfree-by-choice woman from Indiana meets her polar opposite in Cameron, a Mormon father of 5 living in Brooklyn, to debate difficult topics around child-rearing on a planet with an uneasy future. How does religion and the reality of climate change factor into the choice to have children -- and large families?

Should We Kid or Not? Episode 1

7m 51s

Two women in their early '30s have a powerful conversation about their reproductive choices: Lizbeth, married, Mexican American and from a Catholic family, is unsure if she wants kids; while Ann Marie, from a Jamaican family for whom having kids is a given, has one young child, and wants more.? See how each deals with family and cultural expectations when it comes to having kids.

Jose and Mr. Ramos: The Dreamer

8m 19s / TV-Y

A follow-up to East of Salinas, The Dreamer revisits Jose Ansaldo, a bright, optimistic kid about to graduate from middle school in Salinas, California, the nation's "salad bowl." His single mom is a farmworker who struggles to support Jose and his siblings. Jose dreams of going to college to become an engineer, but he and other promising students like him now face the threat of deportation.

Jose and Mr. Ramos

9m 57s / TV-G

With parents working long hours in the fields, third grader Jose Ansaldo turns to his teacher, Oscar Ramos, for guidance. Jose is undocumented and as he grows older he begins to understand the complexities of the situation. Four years later, Mr. Ramos checks in on Jose, now in middle school but no closer to resolution on his immigration status.

Sophie and Ben

12m 14s

Sophie Sartain, director of the Independent Lens documentary Mimi and Dona, which explores the trials of parenting and care through the story of her aunt and grandmother, brings us this short film about her relationship with her son Ben, who was diagnosed with autism. Unlike Dona, Ben is fortunate to live in a time where there is a better understanding of autism and Asperger's.

Never Conquered

10m 7s

In this piece by filmmaker Mat Hames, we get to know more about Eastern Shoshone tribal elder Philbert McLeod, one of the stars of Hames’ Independent Lens film What Was Ours. Philbert had an incredible breadth of knowledge about his tribe’s history, and received a Purple Heart fighting for America in Vietnam. He believed an old beaded charm passed down by an elder helped protect him in combat.

TOWER - Guns on Campus - Short Film

5m 24s

50 years after a gunman opened fire from the tower at University of Texas — the first recorded mass shooting in US history and subject of Independent Lens film TOWER — students can now carry loaded handguns on campus. Proponents of the law, affecting all public universities in Texas, argue an armed student body could help prevent other mass shootings, but many others worry about its ramifications.

County Clerk Changes History

5m 2s / TV-G

In this video extra, learn more about the story of Clela Rorex, former County Clerk in Boulder, CO, who in 1975 helped change history by becoming the first in the United States to approve a marriage license for gay couples, including Richard Adams and Tony Sullivan. Their 40-year struggle for marriage equality is featured in Limited Partnership on Independent Lens on PBS, June 15, 2015.

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