Tough Guys

10 years before the debut of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. In 1979, Bill Viola and Frank Caliguri dreamed up a contest pitting barroom bigmouths against wrestlers, martial artists, boxers, bouncers and brawlers, billed as no-holds-barred new type of competitive fighting. When the fights succeeded beyond their wildest expectations, they were swept up in a chain of events that ended in the first mixed-martial arts ban in the nation. “Tough Guys” chronicles the inception of Caliguri and Viola’s first bouts and the colorful, crazy cast of fighters who made them a hit as well as the politicians who brought it all crashing down. The film brings to life a moment when the national martial arts craze was building to a crescendo as the economies of Pennsylvania steel towns were plummeting to levels of unemployment never seen, breeding desperate men looking for a chance to prove their worth and make some money in the ring.

A Time To Dance: The Life and Work of Norma Canner

This intimate, uncannily moving documentary profiles Norma Canner, a pioneer in dance movement therapy, who found in dance a way to help people who had been discarded by society. The film traces the evolution of Norma's career from Broadway actress in the '40s, through her ground-breaking work in creative movement with disabled and mentally retarded children in the '60s, to her present work as a dance therapist with adults. Utilizing drawing, music, theater, and dance in the context of other modes of therapy, her work has proved extraordinarily beneficial for handicapped individuals, as well as providing cathartic healing experiences for those with deep emotional scars; And her work with children who were blind, deaf, or autistic has became a model.

Never Worry Always Worry

Martijn Van Loo, a dedicated teacher who commutes from Brussels to Mechelen, struggles because of personal and professional pressures. As the challenges of his life mount, he turns to art as a lifeline — a way to cope, connect, and keep going.

A Flea Market Documentary

A Flea Market Documentary is a new PBS special and an all-American celebration of open-air shopping across the country. On any weekend, there may be no better place to find out what makes America great than at a flea market. A Flea Market Documentary is an unabashed celebration of the unusual people and the enticing things that can be found in parking lots, fairgrounds, drive-ins, sidewalks, and wherever else someone has posted a sign saying "Flea Market." It's capitalism mixed with craziness. It's amazing old stuff, great salespeople, the ancient tradition of the open-air market, and the possibility of finding a bargain, all uniting shoppers across the nation. Produced by WQED Pittsburgh, A Flea Market Documentary travels from the gigantic Rose Bowl Market in Pasadena, California, to the busy but modest- sized Eastern Market in Washington, DC, talking with organizers, vendors, food merchants and shoppers.

Stress

"The trauma of 9/11, the ideology of violent retribution, military service as a patriotic family tradition, the “unfairness” of today’s warfare – in their voice-overs, five young Afghanistan war veterans first establish familiar foundations. Joe, Torrie, Mike, James and Justin from Pittsburgh are slow to show us their faces. Physically unharmed but full of inner pain they have become the misunderstood upon their return. Their violent experiences speak a language that the people at home don’t understand.

Things That Aren't There Anymore

Remember when Forbes Field was the world’s greatest ballpark? When the Dips roller coaster at West View Park came out to Route 19? When everyone went to the Allegheny County Fair? When streetcars ran all over town? They’re all parts of this warm and winsome program about Pittsburgh’s past, this heartfelt tribute to great and old places where people used to go to have fun.

Children of the Camps

Documentary following six Americans of Japanese ancestry who were held in U.S. internment camps during World War II.

Kennywood Memories

It’s roller coasters! French fries! And lots of good times! It’s a high-flying, double dipped, screeching, squealing, scream-your-eyes-out documentary about one of America’s greatest amusement parks, Kennywood!

Victims Fight Back

Shocking documentary centering on victims of violent crime who seek to get revenge on their assailants.

The Work

Set entirely inside Folsom Prison, The Work follows three men during four days of intensive group therapy with convicts, revealing an intimate and powerful portrait of authentic human transformation that transcends what we think of as rehabilitation.

Pittsburgh A to Z

Here are twenty-six Amazing, Beautiful, Captivating and Delicious pieces of a great medium-sized city! This unusual video includes everything from Fish sandwiches to Grant Street, from the History Center to our Interesting Islands. Pittsburgh A to Z is a delightful documentary that celebrates (in alphabetical order!) a wide variety of topics from Amateur Archaeologists (looking for arrowheads and other ancient American artifacts) to the zinging zaps of the Zambelli’s. It’s an amusing adventure, a tantalizing tour, a homey history lesson led by popular producer Rick Sebak. All that and much more!

Drug Talk: Some Current Drug Programs

Explores the issues junior high and high schools were facing surrounding teen drug use. Looks at several very integrated public schools and programs being developed in them to prevent drug abuse. Includes the police lecture, the ex-addict, the youth organizer, and the "rap room." Anti-drug program organizers seek students' perspectives and knowledge about drugs. Some nice images of 1970s teens looking very stoned.

Return to Downtown Pittsburgh

In this sequel to his 1992 documentary Downtown Pittsburgh, Rick Sebak takes viewers on a tour of a twenty-first century Pittsburgh that's both changing and charming.

The Falcons

The Falcons is an intimate, observational documentary that delves into the world of the Tshakhruk Ethnoband, a remarkable musical ensemble in the Armenian highlands. Comprised of special-needs children that reside at the state orphanage, these young musicians find solace, strength, and self-expression through the transformative power of music.

Le chemin brut de Lisette et Romain

Houses Around Here

Looking in other people’s houses can be fun. And in southwestern Pennsylvania, it doesn’t matter if you live in a city neighborhood like Friendship or in rural Washington County, you can find wonderful houses not far away that reveal much about the history, the culture and the people in this comfy corner of the state.

Maxo Vanka’s Masterpiece: The Murals at St. Nicholas Church

The magnificent murals at St. Nicholas Church in Millvale, painted by Maxo Vanka in the late 1930s, are legendary. Filmmaker Kenneth Love conveys the significance of these images and the impact they have had on art historians, parishioners, and the public.

The Strip Show

The Strip District is a delicious old neighborhood in Pittsburgh. On most Saturday mornings, its one of the best places on earth, full of hungry people, crunchy fruits, snappy vegetables, world-class street food, cool characters and tasty surprises of all sorts. This 1996 documentary is a tour of the Strip including big breakfasts, shopping along Penn Avenue and Smallman Street, warehouses, churches and nightclubs, along with some amazing history. Producer Rick Sebak says, "It ends up being a big commercial for the Strip, but the neighborhood deserves lots of loving attention. Its a great, great place."

Debt Begins at 20

With music by The Cardboards, The Shakes, Hans Brinker and The Dykes. By combining semi-fictionalized and documentary material, this film is as definitive a record of the Pittsburgh punk scene during its nascent underground as anyone could hope for. Beroes' band footage is radical departure from the gimmickry of stereotyped rock band documentary in its use of pans and slow dollys, capturing small glimpses of the musicians at work that a 'PR' film would have avoided at all costs. The cinematography demands a reconsideration of the rock band documentary's hoary technical vocabulary. From the time this film was made changes have already taken place in Pittsburgh punk-dom as the bands have moved from an insular salon society to more 'legitimate' venues. Some say things are better than ever, others mourn the passing of Pittsburgh punk's innocence. Beroes in Debt Begins at 20 has produced not only entertainment, but also a small and very precious time capsule.

The Spirit of Pittsburgh

THE SPIRIT OF PITTSBURGH celebrates the human achievement of a city's continuing Renaissance. It is the heroic story of how Pittsburgh, once plagued by industrial pollution and urban blight, was transformed in just 40 years to what it is today. It is a story told by people who were intimately involved in its change - scientists, politicians, teachers, construction workers, business and community leaders. Unique archival footage dramatically portrays Pittsburgh's past; stunning photography captures the city today - from its hills, bridges and rivers to the medical, educational and artistic communities in its mosaic of neighborhoods. This is Pittsburgh, a place whose people take pride in their heritage and in their ever-changing home. THE SPIRIT OF PITTSBURGH was commissioned by The Pittsburgh Foundation of Dollar Bank. Look for this remarkable film at its permanent home in the Renaissance Theatre of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.