"Representation is revolution"
A look at the Black revolution in 1970s cinema, from genre films to social realism, from the making of new superstars to the craft of rising auteurs.
Stream
Social & External
The people behind it
Elvis Mitchell
Narrator (voice)
Margaret Avery
Self
Harry Belafonte
Charles Burnett
Suzanne de Passe
Antonio Fargas
Laurence Fishburne
Sheila Frazier
Whoopi Goldberg
Samuel L. Jackson
A short collection of local legends and ghost stories about Erie, Pennsylvania, and its surrounding areas. Produced by and aired on WQLN Channel 54 Erie.
Hawaii, May 1977. After the success of Star Wars, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg meet to find a new project to work on together, the former as producer, the latter as director. The story of how the charismatic archaeologist Indiana Jones was born and how his first adventure, released in 1981, triumphed at box offices around the world.
The three teachers Svetlana, Sandrine and Taslima teach children and young people in places that are hardly accessible for “normal” lessons - in a nomad tent under the snow cover of Siberia, in a hut in the bushland of Burkina Faso and on a school boat in Bangladesh. They share a common goal: to enable their students to have a better future through education.
A documentary about street-involved women sex workers in San Diego, California who were murdered in the 1980s and 1990s. The documentary highlights police negligence and outright abuse.
After the 1999 premiere of the first Matrix movie, it became a pop culture phenomenon. A special documentary about the Matrix saga and its prophetic aspects.
This documentary is hosted by William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy and they take us through the history of Star Trek. We also get to see bloopers from the original series and the current space program and how progression has been in reality, hosted by LeVar Burton.
Everyone thinks that Bob Kane created Batman, but that’s not the whole truth. One author makes it his crusade to make it known that Bill Finger, a struggling writer, actually helped invent the iconic superhero, from concept to costume to the very character we all know and love. Bruce Wayne may be Batman’s secret identity, but his creator was always a true mystery.
Home movie collection of the Bohulano Family of Stockton, CA. Footage dates between the 1950s-1970s.
A compilation of interviews, rehearsals and backstage footage of Michael Jackson as he prepared for his series of sold-out shows in London.
The Garbage Pail Kids are 30 years old. Celebrate their gross-out greatness with artist interviews, superfan collections, and more.
Documentary about Bob and Kathy Burns, the goodwill ambassadors of science fiction film fandom.
Explore the life of Flannery O’Connor whose provocative fiction was unlike anything published before. Featuring never-before-seen archival footage, newly discovered journals, and interviews with Mary Karr, Tommy Lee Jones, Hilton Als, and more.
How the Japanese process American pop culture and make it their own -- a mind-bending odyssey through cultural mixing.
Dengbêjên Me is a empathetic documentary about the last living representatives of the Kurdish oral storytelling tradition—the Dengbêjs. The film is dedicated to their lives, their memories, their pain, and their resistance. Their songs and personal stories create a cinematic archive of a cultural heritage that dates back thousands of years. Between voice, music, and silence, a deeply emotional journey unfolds, becoming a farewell, a testimony, and an act of cultural survival.
In 1975, as America faced social and political upheaval, filmmakers turned chaos into art.
Haida Gwaii, an archipelago off the west coast of Canada, is home to Skil Jaadee and her family. They live in harmony with nature and have made it their mission to save their language and preserve their history.
Working men and women leave through the main gate of the Lumière factory in Lyon, France. Filmed on 22 March 1895, it is often referred to as the first real motion picture ever made, although Louis Le Prince's 1888 Roundhay Garden Scene pre-dated it by seven years. Three separate versions of this film exist, which differ from one another in numerous ways. The first version features a carriage drawn by one horse, while in the second version the carriage is drawn by two horses, and there is no carriage at all in the third version. The clothing style is also different between the three versions, demonstrating the different seasons in which each was filmed. This film was made in the 35 mm format with an aspect ratio of 1.33:1, and at a speed of 16 frames per second. At that rate, the 17 meters of film length provided a duration of 46 seconds, holding a total of 800 frames.
Exploration of the ordinary lives led by women of different classes—a college professor, an unmarried woman, and a seasoned drama artist. They unveil the societal intricacies woven into their social backgrounds, with typical evening talks besides them. Gripping tales of yore immersed in the metaphorical embrace of their surroundings, their familial shelters are emblematic of resilience and protection, where profound truths lie hidden within the depths of the commonplace.
In the summer of 1975, the young director Steven Spielberg set new standards for cinema worldwide with an oversized shark bite, a plastic shark fin and an unmistakable two-note main theme composed by John Williams. With the horror from the deep, a man-eating, gigantic great white shark, the film of the same name became a similarly traumatic reference as Alfred Hitchcock's "Psycho": it triggered lasting primal fears across generations. On the beaches of the world, there was clearly a "before" and an "after". Steven Spielberg, who was only 28 at the time, not only set new standards for the thriller genre, but also hid his biting criticism of US capitalism in the 1970s behind it.
Traces the making of UC-Davis professor Darrell Hamamoto's first-ever Asian American porn movie ("Skin on Skin") from planning to production. Hou interviews filmmakers Justin Lin ("Better Luck Tomorrow") and Eric Byler ("Charlotte Sometimes"), professor Elaine Kim and playwright David Henry Hwang to get at whether Asian America truly needs its own "porno practices" as a way of decolonizing the community's collective sexual imaginations and confronting how sexuality and masculinity are treated in the Asian American community.
During the same summer as Woodstock, over 300,000 people attended the Harlem Cultural Festival, celebrating African American music and culture, and promoting Black pride and unity. The footage from the festival sat in a basement, unseen for over 50 years, keeping this incredible event in America's history lost — until now.
A documentary on the expletive's origin, why it offends some people so deeply, and what can be gained from its use.
A documentary examining the decade of the 1970s as a turning point in American cinema. Some of today's best filmmakers interview the influential directors of that time.
In 1977, a book of photographs captured an awakening - women shedding the cultural restrictions of their childhoods and embracing their full humanity. This documentary revisits those photos, those women and those times and takes aim at our culture today that alarmingly shows the need for continued change.
An in-depth look at the prison system in the United States and how it reveals the nation's history of racial inequality.
Global superstar Jennifer Lopez reflects on her multifaceted career and the pressure of life in the spotlight in this intimate documentary.
While The Rolling Stones rehearse "Sympathy for the Devil" in the studio, an alternating narrative reflects on 1968 society, politics and culture through five different vignettes.
Home movies, photographs, and recited poetry illustrate the life of Tupac Shakur, one of the most beloved, revolutionary, and volatile hip-hop MCs of all time.
A subjective documentary that explores various theories about hidden meanings in Stanley Kubrick's classic film The Shining. Five very different points of view are illuminated through voice over, film clips, animation and dramatic reenactments.
With rare access and no holds barred, the acclaimed documentarian investigates a growing ultra-masculine network and its controversial influencers.
An intimate, all-access documentary that will chronicle Lewis Capaldi's journey from a scrappy teen with a viral performance to a Grammy-nominated pop star.
Here's a little story they're about to tell... Mike Diamond and Adam Horovitz share the story of their band and 40 years of friendship in a live documentary experience directed by friend, collaborator, and their former grandfather, Spike Jonze.
The life story of ‘Zen Anarchist’ filmmaker John Milius, one of the most influential storytellers of his generation.
A detailed account of the life and artistic career of legendary filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, from his early days as a video club manager to the scandalous fall in disgrace of producer Harvey Weinstein. A story about how to shoot eight great movies and become an icon of modern pop culture.
A revealing, edgy, and disarmingly personal journey into the world of superfandom, told through the lens of one of the world's most iconic and enduring artists, Eminem, and the fans that worship him.
An investigation of how Hollywood's fabled stories have deeply influenced how Americans feel about transgender people, and how transgender people have been taught to feel about themselves.
A portrait of singer-songwriter Shawn Mendes' life, chronicling the past few years of his rise and journey.
A documentary about the rise and fall of the Cannon Film Group, the legendary independent film company helmed by Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus.
After years in the limelight, Selena Gomez achieves unimaginable stardom. But just as she reaches a new peak, an unexpected turn pulls her into darkness. This uniquely raw and intimate documentary spans her six-year journey into a new light.
Part documentary, part concert film, part fever dream, this film captures the troubled spirit of America in 1975 and the joyous music that Dylan performed during the fall of that year.