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FILM LIBRARY: POLITICS & GOVERNMENT

Belarusian Waltz
by Andrzej Fidyk

Belarus has been called "Europe's last dictatorship." Since 1994, Alexander Lukashenko has ruled the ex-Soviet republic with a despotic hand, jailing the opposition, shutting down the press and refusing to investigate the assassinations of dissidents. He has virtually silenced his critics — but not one lone performance artist who stages public stunts mocking the dictator's pretensions. "Belarusian Waltz" is the story of Alexander Pushkin, whose audacious, comical exploits find him facing the hostility of the police and the consternation of his family. An offbeat tale of post-modern street theater meeting 1930s-style authoritarianism, the film offers a surprising window into the soul of the Belarusian people. A co-production of ITVS International.

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Campaign
by Kazuhiro Soda

This is democracy — Japanese style. "Campaign" provides a startling insider's view of Japanese electoral politics in this portrait of a man plucked from obscurity by the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) to run for a critical seat on a suburban city council. Kazuhiko "Yama-san" Yamauchi's LDP handlers are unconcerned that he has zero political experience, no charisma, no supporters and no time to prepare. What he does have is the institutional power of Japan's modern version of Tammany Hall pushing him forward. Yama-san allows his life to be turned upside down as he pursues the rituals of Japanese electioneering — with both tragic and comic results. A co-presentation with the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM).

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Discussion Guide | Further Reading List | Lesson Plan

Election Day
by Katy Chevigny

Forget the pie charts, color-coded maps and hyperventilating pundits. What's the street-level experience of voters in today's America? In a triumph of documentary storytelling, "Election Day" combines 11 stories — shot simultaneously on November 2, 2004, from dawn until long past midnight — into one. Factory workers, ex-felons, harried moms, Native American activists and diligent poll watchers, from South Dakota to Florida, take the process of democracy into their own hands. The result: an entertaining, inspiring and sometimes unsettling tapestry of citizens determined on one fateful day to make their votes count. A co-production of Independent Television Service (ITVS).

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The Fall of Fujimori
by Ellen Perry

In 1990, an unknown candidate named Alberto Fujimori rode a wave of popular support to become the president of Peru. He fought an all-out war on terror against the guerilla organization Shining Path, and won. Ten years later, accused of kidnapping, murder and corruption, he fled Peru to his native Japan, where he was in exile for four years. Fujimori has remained virtually silent about the abrupt end of his controversial presidency, until now. He granted an unprecedented, in-depth interview to filmmaker Ellen Perry, who presents an intimate, chilling portrait of this enigmatic leader’s rise and fall.

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The Judge and the General
by Elizabeth Farnsworth and Patricio Lanfranco

When in 1998 Chilean judge Juan Guzman was assigned the first criminal cases against the country's ex-dictator, General Augusto Pinochet, no one expected much. Guzman had supported Pinochet's 1973 coup — waged as an anti-Communist crusade — that left the democratically elected president, Salvador Allende, and thousands of others dead or "disappeared." The filmmakers trace the judge's descent into what he calls "the abyss," where he uncovers the past — including his own role in the tragedy. "The Judge and the General" reveals one of the 20th century's most notorious episodes and tells a cautionary tale about violating human rights in the name of "higher ideals." A co-production of Independent Television Service (ITVS) in association with Latino Public Broadcasting.

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Of Civil Wrongs and Rights: The Fred Korematsu Story
by Eric Paul Fournier

Fred Korematsu was probably never more American than when he resisted, and then challenged in court, the forced internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II. Korematsu lost his landmark Supreme Court case in 1944, but never his indignation and resolve. "Of Civil Wrongs and Rights" is the untold history of the 40-year legal fight to vindicate Korematsu — one that finally turned a civil injustice into a civil rights victory.

This film is only available in our free lending library for Youth Views screenings.

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¡Palante Siempre Palante! The Young Lords
by Iris Morales

They were leaders of the Young Lords Party, the militant Puerto Rican civil rights organization based in New York. Today, many are notable mainstream journalists, including Juan Gonzalez, Felipe Luciano and Pablo Guzman. Iris Morales makes history come alive as veterans of the movement recall their fight for equality, jobs, health care, and education.

This film is only available in our free lending library for Youth Views screenings.

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The Reckoning: The Battle for the International Criminal Court
by Pamela Yates

Over 120 countries have united to form the International Criminal Court (ICC) — the first permanent court created to prosecute perpetrators, no matter how powerful, of crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide. The Reckoning follows dynamic ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo and his team for three years across four continents as he issues arrest warrants for Lord's Resistance Army leaders in Uganda, puts Congolese warlords on trial, shakes up the Colombian justice system, and charges Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir with genocide in Darfur. Like a deft thriller, The Reckoning keeps you on the edge of your seat. Will the prosecutor succeed? Will the world ensure that justice prevails? An Official Selection of the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.

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Revolution '67
by Marylou Tibaldo-Bongiorno

"Revolution '67" is an illuminating account of events too often relegated to footnotes in U.S. history — the black urban rebellions of the 1960s. Focusing on the six-day Newark, New Jersey outbreak in mid-July, "Revolution '67" reveals how the disturbance began as spontaneous revolts against poverty and police brutality and ended as fateful milestones in America's struggles over race and economic justice. Voices from across the spectrum — activists Tom Hayden and Amiri Baraka, journalist Bob Herbert, Mayor Sharpe James and other officials, National Guardsmen and Newark citizens — recall lessons as hard-earned then as they have been easy to neglect since. A co-production with the Independent Television Service (ITVS), in association with WSKG.

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FILMS FROM THE ARCHIVE

Films that are currently unavailable in our free lending library but that we recommend for group and classroom screenings.

Bill's Run: A Political Journey in Rural Kansas
by Richard Kassebaum

When documentary filmmaker Richard Kassebaum learned that his younger brother, Bill, a rancher and country lawyer, had decided to run for the Kansas House of Representatives, he left Los Angeles and spent seven weeks on the campaign trail chronicling his brother's first run for public office. The film captures Bill's journey through the primary: a comical and sometimes painful quest of quixotic proportions, as he takes on the Republican incumbent and fights to preserve a lifestyle quickly disappearing from rural America. A strong supporter was his mother, former U.S. Senator Nancy Landon Kassebaum, who proved both a rose and a thorn to his campaign. The exciting outcome shows, once again, that every vote counts. A 2004 Election Issue Special.

This film is not currently available in our free lending library.

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Discussion Guide

CHISHOLM '72 - Unbought & Unbossed
by Shola Lynch

In 1968, Shirley Chisholm becomes the first black woman elected to Congress. In 1972, she becomes the first black woman to run for President. Shunned by the political establishment, she's supported by a motley crew of blacks, feminists, and young voters. Their campaign-trail adventures are frenzied, fierce, and fundamentally right on! After the 2004 elections, her story reminds all Americans that, in Chisholm's words, "the institutions of this country belong to all of the people who inhabit it." An Independent Television Service (ITVS) and National Black Programming Consortium (NBPC) co-presentation. "Rather than seeming dated, Chisholm's moxie and commitment is a refreshing antidote to the opportunism and cynicism that rules the political roost today ... It's not only a historical document but an inspiring tale of someone who made a difference." — James Greenberg, The Hollywood Reporter

This film is not currently available in our free lending library.

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Georgie Girl
by Annie Goldson and Peter Wells

Born George Beyer, one-time prostitute-turned-politician, Georgina Beyer was elected to New Zealand's Parliament in 1999, becoming the world's first transsexual to hold a national office. Amazingly, a mostly white, conservative, rural constituency voted this former sex worker of Maori descent into office. Chronicling Georgina's transformations from farm boy to celebrated cabaret diva to grassroots community leader, "Georgie Girl" couples interviews and images of Beyer's nightclub and film performances with footage showing a day in the life of this New Zealand Member of Parliament. The film presents a remarkable account of Beyer's precedent-setting accomplishment, revealing her intelligence, charisma and humor.

This film is only available in our free lending library for Youth Views screenings.

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Larry v. Lockney
by Mark Birnbaum and Jim Schermbeck

Meet Larry Tannahill. Out of 2,000 residents in the West Texas town of Lockney, he's the only one against the school board's new mandatory drug testing policy. Larry, a third-generation farmer, believes the testing is a violation of his son's Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable searches. He sues to overturn the policy, forming an unlikely alliance with the American Civil Liberties Union. In the battle over rights, Larry makes headlines around the country, loses his job and his family receives threats. Mark Birnbaum and Jim Schermbeck's "Larry v. Lockney" dramatically reveals the price of democracy in a small Texas town, when one man stands against the majority. An Independent Television Service (ITVS) co-presentation.

This film is not currently available in our free lending library.

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Last Man Standing: Politics Texas Style
by Paul Stekler

Asking what the politics are that launched George W. Bush to national office, award-winning filmmaker Paul Stekler takes his camera to Texas for a lively, behind-the-scenes look at a pair of 2002 elections — one for state representative in a district that includes Lyndon Johnson's hometown, and a polarizing race for governor. Prominent Texans, including Bush strategist Karl Rove, former Governor Ann Richards, Clinton appointees Henry Cisneros and Paul Begala, and writer Molly Ivins shed light on the changing political landscape. In the end, "Last Man Standing" shows how politics in Texas may have become the blueprint for Washington. A 2004 Election Issue Special.

This film is not currently available in our free lending library.

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My Country, My Country
by Laura Poitras

Working alone in Iraq over eight months, filmmaker Laura Poitras ("Flag Wars," P.O.V.) creates an extraordinarily intimate portrait of Iraqis living under U.S. occupation. Her principal focus is Dr. Riyadh, an Iraqi medical doctor, father of six and Sunni political candidate. An outspoken critic of the occupation, he is equally passionate about the need to establish democracy in Iraq, arguing that Sunni participation in the January 2005 elections is essential. Yet all around him, Dr. Riyadh sees only chaos, as his waiting room fills each day with patients suffering the physical and mental effects of ever-increasing violence. "My Country, My Country" is a powerful mosaic of daily life in Iraq. A co-production with the Independent Television Service (ITVS), produced in association with P.O.V./American Documentary.   Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2007.

This film is not currently available in our free lending library.

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Street Fight
by Marshall Curry

The 2006 Academy Award nominated "Street Fight" covers the turbulent campaign of Cory Booker, a 32-year old Rhodes Scholar/Yale Law graduate running for mayor of Newark, N.J. against Sharpe James, the four-term incumbent twice his age. An urban David and Goliath story, the film chronicles the young man's struggle against the city's entrenched political machine, which routinely uses strong-arm tactics to hold onto power. The battle sheds light on important questions about democracy, power, poverty and race. When the mayor accuses the Ivy League-educated challenger of not being "really black," the campaign forces voters to examine how we define race in America. A co-presentation with the Independent Television Service (ITVS).

This film is not currently available in our free lending library.

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