Former First Lady Michelle Obama's story has just begun. The Obamas have remained quite busy with their new life of activism which includes their issue-oriented production company, Higher Ground, which won an Oscar for Best Documentary in 2020. Mrs. Obama's autobiography, Becoming, has become the best-selling memoir of all time and even won a Grammy following the publication of her book. Get lost in the incredible journey of this modern-day First Lady's story in the making...
Three arrested and detained undocumented immigrants must navigate the system to fight impending deportation.
Roy Cohn personified the dark arts of American politics, turning empty vessels into dangerous demagogues - from Joseph McCarthy to his final project, Donald J. Trump. This thriller-like exposé connects the dots, revealing how a deeply troubled master manipulator shaped our current American nightmare.
The Pittsburgh History Series is an ongoing series of hour-long documentaries that highlight various parts of our city's history. Since 1988, these documentaries have captivated local audiences by mixing memories, old films, [mementos], home movies, snapshots and new interviews.
In February 1939, more than 20,000 Americans filled Madison Square Garden for an event billed as a “Pro-American Rally.” Images of George Washington hung next to swastikas and speakers railed against the “Jewish controlled media” and called for a return to a racially “pure” America. The keynote speaker was Fritz Kuhn, head of the German American Bund. Nazi Town, USA tells the largely unknown story of the Bund, which had scores of chapters in suburbs and big cities across the country and represented what many believe was a real threat of fascist subversion in the United States. The Bund held joint rallies with the Ku Klux Klan and ran dozens of summer camps for children centered around Nazi ideology and imagery. Its melding of patriotic values with virulent anti-Semitism raised thorny issues that we continue to wrestle with today.
In 2004 a group of friends took the stage at a small coffee house in Dekalb Illinois with the sole purpose of pissing off everyone. Surprisingly, enough people liked what the band was doing that they continued to play music under the name Weekend Nachos. This documentary simply tells the story of Weekend Nachos.
Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester, Illinois, a predominately white suburban school well-known for the excellence of its basketball program. Gates and Agee dream of NBA stardom, and with the support of their close-knit families, they battle the social and physical obstacles that stand in their way. This acclaimed documentary was shot over the course of five years.
Zeitgeist: Addendum premiered at the 5th Annual Artivist Film Festival. Director Peter Joseph stated: "The failure of our world to resolve the issues of war, poverty, and corruption, rests within a gross ignorance about what guides human behavior to begin with. It address the true source of the instability in our society, while offering the only fundamental, long-term solution."
A documentary on funk and P-funk and the bands and artists that made it all happen: James Brown, Sly Stone, George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Maurice White and his Earth Wind & Fire, Average White Band, Kool & The Gang and lots more. It tells the story of black American music and how it evolved from funk to more main stream to disco to hiphop to contemporary R 'n B and its impact on society. Music and live footage from the bands, interviews with artists and band members of Kool & The Gang, Earth Wind & Fire, George Clinton and lots more.
Legendary and controversial attorney Roy Cohn was a power broker in the rough and tumble world of New York City business and politics. Senator Joseph R. McCarthy’s top counsel during investigations into Communist activities in the 1950s, Cohn is also known for being Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, fixer and mentor.
Currently all the rage with hipsters worldwide, Chicago Juke music has roots that run deep. The film chronicles the birth and evolution of a genre over 25 years. A fascinating watch!
Wings Over Water tells the fascinating story of naval aviation's critical role in making the U.S. a world power. Film highlights include archival footage of some of the most terrifying and intense airspace battles fought and the intriguing interviews of the veterans who took part in them. This is the story of naval aviation from its conception to the important role it played in battles fought, won, and lost, all the while examining American foreign policy, foreign relations, and long-simmering international conflict. An evocative, powerful, and informative documentary, Wings Over Water is the story behind the story: how and why America developed maritime aviation technology, what it meant to our past, and what it means to our future.
A documentary following the life of Olaudah Equiano, based on his autobiography "The Interesting Narration of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, or Gustavus Vassa the African".
Defying the state legislature that outlawed abortion, the Catholic Church that condemned it, and the Chicago Mob that was profiting from it, the members of “Jane” risked their personal and professional lives to support women with unwanted pregnancies. In the pre-Roe v. Wade era — a time when abortion was a crime in most states and even circulating information about abortion was a felony in Illinois — the Janes provided low-cost and free abortions to an estimated 11,000 women.
Millions of American Evangelicals are praying for the State of Israel. This film traces this unusual relationship, from rural Kentucky to the halls of government in Washington, through the moving of the American Embassy in Jerusalem and to the annexation plan of the West Bank.
Can flipping through the channels change your life? For Karen, a former prosecutor living in Chicago, her world changed forever when she accidentally fell in love with telenovelas. Now she has quit her job, and she's moving to Mexico City to write the telenovela she's always wanted to watch.
A portrait of the Chicago Near-North nightlife scene in the mid-1960s, centering around the struggles and romantic desires of an African American singer played by long-forgotten folk sensation Willie Wright. (Courtesy Chicago Film Archives)
“17 Seconds” provides an all-access pass inside the Blackhawks locker room party in Boston and the airplane ride home with the Cup following Game 6, in addition to insight from the players on the Stanley Cup-winning team and members of the organization. Fans can ride along on the players’ buses during the championship parade and follow the Blackhawks as they spend their Cup days with family and friends, sharing the greatest trophy in sports with their communities. It also includes footage from the opening night banner raising ceremony.
A car slowly navigates the winding streets and disparate airwaves of the United States of America in search of the scars of capitalism in natural landscapes, urban environments, people, and wildife.
The colorful stories of Irish-American immigrants and their descendants who lived the history and exemplify the repeated cycle of the outsider becoming the ultimate Chicago citizen-insider.
Mentally ill. Deviant. Diseased. And in need of a cure. These were among the terms psychiatrists used to describe gay women and men in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. And as long as they were “sick”, progress toward equality was impossible. This documentary chronicles the battle waged by a small group of activists who declared war against a formidable institution – and won a crucial victory in the modern movement for LGBTQIA+ equality.