Only the Young (2012)

Directors:
Elizabeth Mims, Jason Tippet

IMDB

Synopsis:
Filmmakers Jason Tippet and Elizabeth Mims profile three gently rebellious teens from a depressed So Cal desert town where life seems to have come to a standstill. Kevin and Garrison are two friends who live to skate. They dream of building a half-pipe where the local kids can escape the prying eyes of their parents, but remain heavily involved in a youth-oriented skateboarding group sponsored by their local church. As Kevin and Garrison both develop an adolescent crush on their mutual friend Skye, all three contend with unexpected developments that could lead them down separate paths, and out of their dead-end existence.

Well-Founded Fear (2000)

Directors:
Michael Camerini, Shari Robertson

IMDB

Synopsis:
Originally shown as part of the "POV" series on PBS, Well-Founded Fear examines the United States' system for granting political asylum and the refugees caught within it. Following several pending cases at the U.S. Immigration Office, Camarinie and Robertson give a behind-the-scenes view of how immigration lawyers determine who will receive political asylum. What the documentary reveals is a system fraught with contradictions and impossibilities. Faced with the unenviable task of separating truth from fiction in their applicant's stories, the officials fall back on guesswork and suspicion. On the other side, viewers see the debilitating fear of the applicants, afraid that a simple slip of the tongue will condemn them to deportation. Slowly the immigrants realize that their asylum is based less on proving a "well-founded fear of persecution" and more on blind luck. One asylum seeker justly calls it "asylum-officer roulette." There are no easy answers here but there is an unflinching look at democratic principles at work, for better or worse.

The Redemption of General Butt Naked (2011)

Directors:
Daniele Anastasion, Eric Strauss

IMDB

Synopsis:
Between 1989 and 2003, the African nation of Liberia was caught up in civil war, and one of the most feared insurgent leaders during the war was Joshua Milton Blahyi. A tribal priest in his younger days, Blahyi became a warlord known as "General Butt Naked" for his habit of going into battle nude except for boots and a rifle or sword, convinced his naked body would give him a cloak of invincibility while striking fear into his enemies. Leading an army largely consisting of kidnapped child soldiers, Blahyi claims to have be responsible for the death of 20,000 men, women and children, and says he practiced devil worship and committed human and animal sacrifices before taking the battlefield. With Liberia still struggling with the scars of war, Blahyi has renounced his violent past and returned to the pulpit, preaching the word of God and attempting to atone for his monstrous deeds. But while some support Blahyi's new crusade, others question the sincerity of his new guise as a man of peace. Filmmaker Eric Strauss studies the past and present of a man of tremendous contrasts in the documentary The Redemption of General Butt Naked, which was an official selection at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.

The Corporation (2003)

Directors:
Jennifer Abbott, Mark Achbar

IMDB

Synopsis:
In the mid-1800s, corporations began to be recognized as individuals by U.S. courts, granting them unprecedented rights. The Corporation, a documentary by filmmakers Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott and author Joel Bakan, delves into that legal standard, essentially asking: if corporations were people, what kind of people would they be? Applying psychiatric principles and FBI forensic techniques, and through a series of case studies, the film determines that this entity, the corporation, which has an increasing power over the day-to-day existence of nearly every living creature on earth, would be a psychopath. The case studies include a story about how two reporters were fired from Fox News for refusing to soft-pedal a story about the dangers of a Monsanto product given to dairy cows, and another about Bolivian workers who banded together to defend their rights to their own water supply. The pervasiveness of corporate influence on our lives is explored through an examination of efforts to influence behavior, including that of children. The filmmakers interview leftist figures like Michael Moore, Howard Zinn, Naomi Klein, and Noam Chomsky, and give representatives from companies Burson Marsteller, Disney, Pfizer, and Initiative Media a chance to relay their own points-of-view. The Corporation won the Best Documentary World Cinema Audience Award at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival.

If a Tree Falls (2011)

Directors:
Marshall Curry, Sam Cullman

IMDB

Synopsis:
Filmmaker Marshall Curry explores the inner workings of the Earth Liberation Front, a revolutionary movement devoted to crippling facilities involved in deforestation, while simultaneously offering a profile of Oregon ELF member Daniel McGowan, who was brought up on terrorism charges for his involvement with the radical group.

Dətropia (2012)

Directors:
Həidi Ewing, Rachəl Grady

IMDB

Synopsis:
In 1930, Dətroit was the fastest growing city in the world as the booming auto industry made it one of America's key manufacturing centers and people flocked to Michigan looking for steady jobs and a chance to live out the American dream. In the 21st Century, as American car makers struggle to compete and production has moved either overseas or to "right to work" states, unemployment in Detroit has been estimated at close to 50 percent, while the city's population has shrunk from 1.8 million in 1950 to less than 714,000 in 2010. Filmmakers Həidi Ewing and Rachəl Grady present a look at life in contemporary Detroit in the documentary Dətropia, which focuses on the people who are struggling to keep a great American city alive in the wake of serious economic and political woes. Dətropia also offers troubling facts on the circumstances that led to Detroit's economic collapse, and how the city's problems may be coming to a town near you. Dətropia was an official selection at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, where it received honors for best documentary editing.

Another Road Home (2004)

Director:
Danae Elon

IMDB

Synopsis:
In 1967, not long after the Israeli Six Day War, noted author Amos Elon had moved into a new home in West Jerusalem, and he and his wife decided to hire someone to help watch over their one-year-old daughter, Danae. Mahmoud \"Musa\" Obeidallah, a Palestinian, applied for the job and got it, and so in the midst of bitter conflict, Danae grew up being taken care of and tutored by a man who was supposed to be a political rival of her family. In her early twenties, Danae lost contact with Musa, but recalled hearing that his children had relocated to New Jersey so they would be able to avoid the violence that had overrun his homeland. Years later, after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Danae saw a news report stating that Patterson, NJ, was believed to have been home to an enclave of Arab terrorists, and Danae became both curious and concerned about the fate of Musa and his family. She decided to find Musa, and made a film about her search; Another Road Home was the result, and explores the odd contradictions of their relationship, as well as the deep affection that still exists between Danae and Musa.

Secret Lives: Hidden Children and Their Rescuers During WWII (2002)

Director:
Aviva Slesin

IMDB

Synopsis:
As an infant at the dawn of World War II, director Aviva Slesin was handed off by her Jewish parents to a Lithuanian family, for safekeeping from the Nazis. Now, Slesin seeks out the stories of other "adoptees" and their families in the documentary Secret Lives: Hidden Children & Their Rescuers During WWII. Over the course of interviews with over five dozen children who escaped the Holocaust, Slesin learns of the struggles, hardships, and love experienced by these displaced sons and daughters, and about their faint memories of their birth parents. By the same token, Slesin finds out the rationales of the families who took them in -- whether due to goodwill, loyalty, or, in some cases, economic gain -- and even examines the resentment felt by some of them toward their "new" brothers and sisters. Featuring a score by avant-garde composer John Zorn, Secret Lives made the festival rounds in 2002, winning an award at the Hamptons Film Festival before its theatrical release in 2003.

The Trap: What Happened to Our Dream of Freedom (2007)

Director:
Adam Curtis

IMDB

Synopsis:
The many ways in which Western notions of personal and political freedom are changing in the 21st Century are explored in this three-part documentary from writer and filmmaker Adam Curtis. Part one, titled "F--k You, Buddy," explores how the widely held belief formulated by economist Friedrich von Hayek that the free market system would create a wealthier and more responsible society is giving way to John Nash's principle that individuals will almost always do what is in their own best interest, even if its at the expense of others. Part Two, "The Lonely Robot," focuses on how governments often act in their own interest at the expense of their citizens, and the malaise that's a by product of growing cynicism by ordinary people towards their leaders. And the conclusion, "We Will Force You To Be Free," investigates the theories of British thinker Isaiah Berlin and his twin principles of "positive liberty" (in which the people take direct and active control of their destiny) and "negative liberty" (freedom that inherited with no active effort towards any specific goal). Featuring interviews with John Nash, James Buchanan, Robert Reich, Tom Peters, Thomas Frank, Sir Anthony Jay and many others, The Trap: What Happened To Our Dream Of Freedom was originally produced for British television, but later received theatrical screenings at a number of film festivals.

Mule Skinner Blues (2001)

Director:
Stephen Earnhart

IMDB

Synopsis:
Set in Florida's beach community, Mule Skinner Blues chronicles a group of locals who crave self-expression in the midst of their Southern Gothic lifestyles. Chief among the figures is Beanie Andrew, a fifty-something former alcoholic who acts, sings, dances, writes, and lives in a trailer park outside Jacksonville and who finds work as an extra in a music video. He then presents Stephen with a series of home videos displaying his and his friends' talents. Most of them are out-of-work shrimpers, such as Steve Walker, a Vietnam veteran and troubadour; Ricky Lix, an ill-tempered blues guitarist; Miss Jeannie, a country singer who also has a penchant for yodeling; and Annabelle Lea, an art school grad and costume designer who keeps her departed bulldog's dead body in a backyard freezer. After the music video shoot, Stephen returns to Florida to find the group beginning work on an ambitious horror film called "Turnabout Is Fair Play," which has no completed script; still, the team tries to pull together to make the picture. The subject matter is very similar to Chris Smith's award-winning documentary American Movie, which also followed a struggling group of filmmakers through their production of a very low-budget genre piece.

Devil's Playground (2002)

Director:
Lucy Walker

IMDB

Synopsis:
Lucy Walker directed this documentary about a little-known facet of Amish life. Although the Amish live in traditionally conservative enclaves, shunning modern conveniences and electricity while favoring a strict code of conduct and dress, they do have a moment in their lives known as "rumspringa." When an Amish child turns 16, they are allowed to interact with and take part in life away from their upbringing. This film follows a handful of teenagers as they break from their past and experiment with drinking, drugs, and driving (possibly for the only time in their lives). Devil's Playground was screened at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.

Paris Is Burning (1990)

Director:
Jennie Livingston

IMDB

Synopsis:
Poignant, well-received documentary that reveals the community of New York's minority drag queens, gay black and Latino men who cross dress as women and invent the dance style of "voguing," imitating the fashion poses on the covers of the magazine Vogue. As director Jennie Livingston discovers, her subjects band together into family-like "houses" for protection, taking the same last names and competing in drag balls where awards are given out for authenticity or "realness," as well as other categories like "evening wear" and "executive wear." Both an embracing and a refutation of the world of high fashion, the balls become the social locus of this underclass, underground society of outcasts defiantly refusing to be ignored by a world that scorns them. Paris Is Burning was one of several critically acclaimed documentaries of the late 1980s and early 1990s excluded from Academy Award nominations, eventually leading to a reappraisal of the Academy's stodgy selection process.

Flag Wars (2003)

Directors:
Linda Goode Bryant, Laura Poitras

IMDB

Synopsis:
Socio-economic status, minority rights, and housing codes all come into dramatic conflict in co-directors Linda Goode Bryant and Laura Poitras' 2003 documentary Flag Wars. Set in a historic district in Columbus, OH, named Olde Towne East, Bryant and Poitras discover the serenity of the primarily African-American neighborhood is in jeopardy. Gay professionals are moving into the neighborhood with the intentions of buying inexpensive property, and as they improve upon their acquisitions, the new residents stand accused of using underhanded -- yet legal -- tactics in order to force the longtime residents to either refurbish their properties or move out of the district altogether. Yet the two minority groups are not as far removed from one another as it would initially appear, as certain conservative elements within the greater Columbus community seem interested in using the conflict to further their own agendas. Flag Wars was a competing film at the 2003 South by Southwest Film Festival, where it was awarded the Jury Documentary Prize.

Festival Express (2003)

Director:
Bob Smeaton

IMDB

Synopsis:
In 1970, with seemingly every North American city of any size holding a rock festival after the success of Woodstock, Ken Walker and Thor Eaton, a pair of Canadian entrepreneurs and music buffs, had an idea: instead of setting up one massive show with a bunch of top-name acts, why not stage a series of them across the country? With this in mind, Walker (then only 22 years old) and Eaton (whose family owned one of Canada's most successful department store chains) signed up Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, the Band, Buddy Guy, the Flying Burrito Brothers, and several others and hired out a private train that would carry the musicians in high style for a string of five shows from Toronto to Calgary. The jaunt was called "The Festival Express," and a camera crew tagged along to capture the shows on film, as well as the constant party that took place en route. The tour proved to be a financial bust and, as a result, the footage sat on the shelf for over thirty years until director Bob Smeaton recut the material into Festival Express, which not only documents the glorious folly of the tour, but offers a hindsight look at the events from some of the surviving participants.

Billy the Kid (2007)

Director:
Jennifer Venditti

IMDB

Synopsis:
Filmmaker Jennifer Venditti crafts a cinéma vérité-style coming-of-age story with this portrait of a small-town teen from Maine who struggles to embrace his outsider status while still being shaped by the tragic events of his childhood. It was while casting the Carter Smith film Bugcrush that Venditti first encountered the boy named Billy -- his eccentric wisdom leaving an immediate and lasting impression on the filmmaker. Later, after casting Billy in the film and preparing to craft a documentary about everyday heroes, Venditti and her crew returned to Maine to spend five days with the troubled young boy who had commanded her attention. Shunned by his classmates and categorized as a "special needs" student by his teachers, Billy boldly refuses to be victimized by his individuality in an environment obsessed with labels and conformity.

Black Gold (2006)

Directors:
Marc Francis, Nick Francis

IMDB

Synopsis:
Filmmakers Marc and Nick Francis team to explore the discrepancy between the skyrocketing profits of multinational coffee companies and the all-time low prices paid for coffee harvests in a documentary that aims to provide a voice to the struggling farmers and laborers who strive to keep the coffee flowing. As devastated farmers are forced to sell off their once-bountiful lands simply to make ends meet, Ethiopia's once-thriving coffee industry slowly falls to ruin; but one man is out to fight for the struggling laborers. Tadesse Meskela represents over 70,000 struggling coffee farmers, and in his mission to help the farmers preserve their rich heritage, Meskela has traveled to every corner of the globe on a mission to seek out fair prices for what are often considered the highest-quality beans on the market.

Girl Model (2011)

Directors:
David Redmon, Ashley Sabin

IMDB

Synopsis:
Documentary filmmakers David Redmon and Ashley Sabin offer this illuminating - and often disturbing - look at the challenges faced by young, aspiring Russian models determined to break into the fashion industry. Ashley (not Sabin) is a former American model who has parleyed her experience in front of the camera into a lucrative job scouting young girls in Siberia. The lucky few who Ashley selects to move on are then offered the opportunity to model in Japan. Ashley's latest discovery is Nadya, a 13 year old, self-described "grey mouse" who possesses a striking natural beauty, and who endeavors to pull her family out of poverty through her modeling career. Upon arriving in Japan and attempting to navigate the strange new world without the benefit of speaking the language, however, Nadya and homesick fellow model Madlen soon realize that nothing is what they thought it would be, and that the work they were "guaranteed" back home seems frustratingly hard to come by. Meanwhile, surreptitious contract clauses stipulate that the girls could quickly be sent home at a moment's notice, and wind up deeply in debt to the same company who promised them the opportunity of a lifetime.

New York Doll (2005)

Director:
Greg Whiteley

IMDB

Synopsis:
The New York Dolls were a rock band who titled their second studio album Too Much Too Soon, and it summed up the band's career all too well. Playing hard, swaggering rock & roll that anticipated the aural chaos of punk five years before the Sex Pistols became a cause célèbre, and boasting an androgynous fashion statement that made David Bowie look timid, the Dolls made headlines and earned a loyal cult following between 1971 and 1976, but their look and sound were too extreme for the mass audience at the time, and the fact that several members of the band had serious drug and alcohol problems hardly helped matters. After the New York Dolls finally fell apart in 1977, singer David Johansen went on to a successful solo career (scoring hit records under the alter ego Buster Poindexter), lead guitarist Johnny Thunders and drummer Jerry Nolan kept the band's sound alive in the Heartbreakers, and guitarist Syl Sylvain cut a few solo albums and occasionally worked with Johansen. But bassist Arthur Kane struggled for years to get his musical career back on track while battling alcoholism, with little success on either front. In 1989, after a stay in the hospital, a clean and sober Kane embraced the Mormon faith, and through his contacts in the church he got a job working in a Mormon genealogy library in Los Angeles. Despite his quiet new life, Kane's greatest dream was to someday play a reunion show with the New York Dolls, and in 2004 his wish unexpectedly became a reality when British pop icon Morrissey invited the surviving members of the band to appear at a prestigious music festival he was curating. Filmmaker Greg Whiteley knew Kane as a fellow Mormon, and New York Doll is a documentary about the ups and downs of Kane's life in music, how his faith came into his life, and his unexpected return to the rock & roll stage at the age of 55.

E-Dreams (2001)

Director:
Wonsuk Chin

IMDB

Synopsis:
In 1998, Joseph Park had an idea: What if someone created an Internet-based delivery service in which, after you'd typed a few commands into a web page, you could have videos, snacks, books, or other small items delivered to your door in less than an hour? By January of 1999, Park and his friend and business partner, Yong Kang, had turned their idea into a business proposal for Kozmo.com, and by the end of that year, the company had managed to secure 150 million dollars in financing, with seemingly everyone on board poised to become fabulously wealthy. In April of 2000, the NASDAQ market crash tolled the end of the e-commerce boom, and it soon became evident to Kozmo.com's investors that the company was losing money like water through a sieve; within months, Park's dream was in ruins. E-Dreams is a documentary that examines the rise and fall of Kozmo.com, and by extension the failings and foibles of the Internet commerce explosion of the late '90s.

Triage: Dr. James Orbinski's Humanitarian Dilemma (2008)

Director:
Patrick Reed

IMDB

Synopsis:
Documentarist Patrick Reed's Triage: Dr. James Orbinski's Humanitarian Dilemma creates a biographical portrait of Orbinski, former head of the non-governmental organization Doctors Without Borders and one of the most ardent social crusaders to work in Third World African countries during the late 20th century. Triage visits Dr. Orbinski at a point when this physician - amid the completion of his memoirs - returns to the countries of his life's work, including Rwanda, Somalia, and Congo, to evaluate the status quo in each locale. As memories of deplorable conditions and grave personal dangers come flooding back to haunt the physician, his current findings are even more sobering and challenging: today, the countries have worsened, elevating the need for social activism. Nevertheless, Orbinski feels encouraged by the individuals who continue to strive for improved conditions, and issues a not-so-subtle plea for westerners to assume social responsibility and become involved at all costs with alleviating the plight of their African neighbors.