Independent Lens (1999)
This acclaimed Emmy Award-winning anthology series features documentaries and a limited number of fiction films united by the creative freedom, artistic achievement and unflinching visions of their independent producers and featuring unforgettable stories about a unique individual, community or moment in history.
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Episode 1 - Parliament Funkadelic: One Nation Under a Groove
Release Date: 2005-10-11“One Nation Under a Groove,” a profile of Parliament Funkadelic that features animation (including an “Afronaut” character voiced by Eddie Griffin) to explore P-Funk's unique mix of rock and R&B, and its rebellious vibe---tightly controlled by mastermind George Clinton, whose 50-year career links doo-wop and hip-hop. “It was just a party,” says singer Nona Hendryx
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Episode 2 - En Route to Baghdad
Release Date: 2005-10-18 -
Episode 3 - The Last Cowboy
Release Date: 2005-10-25 -
Episode 4 - A Family at War
Release Date: 2005-11-08 -
Episode 5 - Mirror Dance
Release Date: 2005-11-15Identical twins Margarita and Ramona de Saa became acclaimed ballerinas with the National Ballet of Cuba. Once inseparable, their relationship disintegrated as one sister left for America while the other embraced the Cuban revolution. This program is the story of two women forever linked by birth and dance, but struggling to overcome rifts not only between sisters but also between nations.
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Episode 6 - Race Is the Place
Release Date: 2005-11-22 -
Episode 7 - Maid in America
Release Date: 2005-11-29 -
Episode 8 - Seoul Train
Release Date: 2005-12-13This film explores the plight of North Korean refugees trying to escape their homeland and China, and tells the story of activists who put themselves in harm's way to save them via a clandestine underground railroad.
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Episode 9 - Sisters: Portrait of a Benedictine Community
Release Date: 2005-12-20This documentary follows the lives of the women of St. Scholastica Monastery in Duluth, Minnesota. The story is told by the Sisters themselves -- at work, prayer and leisure -- as they pursue a balanced life based on the Rule of St. Benedict and face an uncertain future with spirit, conviction and wit.
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Episode 10 - Short Stack: Lost & Found
Release Date: 2005-12-27 -
Episode 11 - Sheriff
Release Date: 2006-01-03 -
Episode 12 - Girl Trouble
Release Date: 2006-01-17 -
Episode 13 - Negroes With Guns: Rob Williams and Black Power
Release Date: 2006-02-07 -
Episode 14 - July '64
Release Date: 2006-02-14July ’64 tells the story of a historic three-day race riot that erupted in two African American neighborhoods in the northern, mid-sized city of Rochester, New York. On the night of July 24, 1964, frustration and resentment brought on by institutional racism, overcrowding, lack of job opportunity and police dog attacks exploded in racial violence that brought Rochester to its knees. Directed by Carvin Eison and produced by Chris Christopher, JULY ’64 combines historic archival footage, news reports and interviews with witnesses and participants to dig deeply into the causes and effects of the historic disturbance.
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Episode 15 - Almost Home
Release Date: 2006-02-21 -
Episode 16 - The Loss of Nameless Things
Release Date: 2006-02-28In 1978, Oakley Hall was a promising playwright on the verge of national recognition when a mysterious fall violently transformed his life. This program is the haunting story of a young man's fall from grace, of the vibrant artists who surrounded him and what happens when, decades later, a theater company discovers the very play he was writing the night he fell.
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Episode 17 - Troop 1500
Release Date: 2006-03-21 -
Episode 18 - Taking the Heat: The First Women Firefighters of New York City
Release Date: 2006-03-28 -
Episode 19 - Trudell
Release Date: 2006-04-11 -
Episode 20 - La Sierra
Release Date: 2006-04-18 -
Episode 21 - A League of Ordinary Gentlemen
Release Date: 2006-04-25 -
Episode 22 - Music from the Inside Out
Release Date: 2006-05-02 -
Episode 23 - Fishbowl; American Made
Release Date: 2006-05-09 -
Episode 24 - Frozen Angels
Release Date: 2006-05-16 -
Episode 25 - The Devil's Miner
Release Date: 2006-05-23 -
Episode 26 - The Great Pink Scare
Release Date: 2006-06-06 -
Episode 27 - The Real Dirt on Farmer John
Release Date: 2006-06-13The Real Dirt on Farmer John is a 2005 documentary film directed by Taggart Siegel about the life of Midwestern farmer John Peterson, operator of Angelic Organics. It tells the history of the eccentric farmer's family farm in rural Caledonia, Illinois.
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Episode 28 - A Lion in the House
Release Date: 2006-06-21 -
Episode 29 - A Lion in the House
Release Date: 2006-06-22