Appalachian Journey

Appalachian Journey is one of five films made from footage that Alan Lomax shot between 1978 and 1985 for the PBS American Patchwork series (1991). It offers songs, dances, stories, and religious rituals of the Southern Appalachians. Preachers, singers, fiddlers, banjo pickers, moonshiners, cloggers, and square dancers recount the good times and the hard times of rural life there. Performers include Tommy Jarrell, Janette Carter, Ray and Stanley Hicks, Frank Proffitt Jr., Sheila Kay Adams, Nimrod Workman and Phyllis Boyens, Raymond Fairchild, and others, with a bonus of a few African-Americans from the North Carolina Piedmont.

1991-07-19 | en

Mauri

Mauri (life principle, life force, vital essence inherent in all living things) The film is an intimate, visually stunning testament to a land and a people who have survived removal, exploitation and colonization — and to the healing ways that are part of the Māori ancestral knowledge. It juxtaposes the enduring trauma of colonialism with the resilience offered through Māori ancestral healing traditions.

2024-06-28 | en

Burkinabè Bounty

This documentary chronicles agricultural resistance and the fight for food sovereignty in Burkina Faso – a small, landlocked country in West Africa. Showcasing activist farmers, students, artists and leaders in the local Slow Food movement, the film looks at how the Burkinabé people are reclaiming their land and defending their traditions against the encroachment of corporate agribusiness. From women gaining economic independence by selling artisanal “dolo” beer, to youth marching in the streets against companies like Monsanto, to hip-hop musicians setting up their own farms and reviving the revolutionary spirit of Thomas Sankara through their music, Burkinabè Bounty shows the creative tactics people are using to take back control of their food, seeds, and future.

2018-01-01 | en

The Molly Maguires

Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, 1876. A secret society of Irish coal miners, bond by a sacred oath, put pressure on the greedy and ruthless company they work for by sabotaging mining facilities in the hope of improving their working conditions and the lives of their families.

1970-02-08 | en

No Such Right: The End of Roe in Appalachia

“No Such Right” is a snapshot of a region in crisis. In the aftermath of the stunning Dobbs v Jackson decision, doctors, lawyers, activists, and young people across Appalachia had to come to terms with what the future of their region and their rights would be. ‘No Such Right’ is our search for answers, highlighting the voices of those impacted by Dobbs and their efforts to reckon with and remedy these issues. This story is a single piece of a much larger national narrative, but it is a story that few others are in a place to tell.

2022-07-29 | en

Into the Pit: The Shocking Story of Deadpit.com

Prestonburg, KY is a small blue-collar town with hunting, fishing, coal mining, and two of the biggest names in online horror talk radio: Wes Vance and Aaron Frye (aka "The Creepy Kentuckian" and "Uncle Bill") The two self-proclaimed "redneck geeks" bonded at a young age while their weekends devouring horror films. They now use their extensive horror knowledge to record a weekly podcast on DEADPIT.com and have found a worldwide audience through their candid conversation, quick wit, and lots of swearing. What started as an outlet to express their love for horror films has evolved into an online industry with millions of followers and the ability to talk to their childhood heroes. But what happens when your childhood pursuits start to collide with your adult aspirations? Can Deadpit survive it's own success?

2009-08-09 | en

Paris to Pittsburgh

Paris to Pittsburgh brings to life the impassioned efforts of individuals who are battling the most severe threats of climate change in their own backyards. Set against the national debate over the United States' energy future - and the Trump administration's explosive decision to exit the Paris Climate Agreement - the film captures what's at stake for communities around the country and the inspiring ways Americans are responding.

2018-12-12 | en

Mountain Talk

Mountain dialect, culture and identity are revealed by the true experts on Southern Appalachian culture--the people whose families have lived there for generations.

2004-02-13 | en

The Smog of the Sea

The Smog of the Sea chronicles a 1-week journey through the remote waters of the Sargasso Sea. Marine scientist Marcus Eriksen invited onboard an unusual crew to help him study the sea: renowned surfers Keith & Dan Malloy, musician Jack Johnson, spearfisher woman Kimi Werner, and bodysurfer Mark Cunningham become citizen scientists on a mission to assess the fate of plastics in the world’s oceans. After years of hearing about the famous “garbage patches” in the ocean’s gyres, the crew is stunned to learn that the patches are a myth: the waters stretching to the horizon are clear blue, with no islands of trash in sight. But as the crew sieves the water and sorts through their haul, a more disturbing reality sets in: a fog of microplastics permeates the world’s oceans, trillions of nearly invisible plastic shards making their way up the marine food chain. You can clean up a garbage patch, but how do you stop a fog?

2017-02-05 | en

I Am One of the People

Harmful chemicals are disproportionately affecting Black communities in Southern Louisiana along the Mississippi River. I am One of the People is an experimental short film exposing the environmental racism of “Cancer Alley.”

2022-05-16 | en

From Kurils with Love

On July 8, 2019, an unusual expedition set sail in the town of Petropavlovsk in Kamchatka. A group of filmmakers, adventurers, climbers, environmentalists and a software entrepreneur traveled along the islands of Onekotan, Ushishir, Simushir, Urup and Kunashir to explore the environmental impact on this remote area of the earth, attempt first ascents, and raise awareness for the protection of the islands.

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Dare to Dream: Anarchism in England in History and in Action

Dare to Dream was directed by Marianne Jenkins, a film student from Goldsmiths' College, University of London, in 1990. It looks at the history of anarchism in the UK and beyond, as well as the state of the movement in the tumultuous year the poll tax uprising finally led to the resignation of Thatcher. Among the anarchist heavyweights interviewed are Albert Meltzer, Vernon Richards, Vi Subversa, Philip Sansom, Clifford Harper and Nicholas Walter, as well as a host of lesser known but equally committed dissidents. The film also features the miners strike and class struggle, squatting and social centres such as Bradford's 1in12 club, animal rights and feminism.

1990-01-03 | en

Ancient Sunshine

A reflection on anarchism and labor, ANCIENT SUNSHINE marks a path through the struggles of climate activism and coal extractions in the American West.

2019-10-01 | en

You Gave Me A Song: The Life and Music of Alice Gerrard

You Gave Me A Song offers an intimate portrait of old-time music pioneer Alice Gerrard and her remarkable, unpredictable journey creating and preserving traditional music. The film follows eighty-four year old Gerrard over several years, weaving together verité footage of living room rehearsals, recording sessions, songwriting, archival work, and performances with photos and rare field recordings. Much of the film is told in Alice’s voice and via interviews with musical collaborators and family members who share the story of Alice and others chasing that high lonesome sound.

2019-04-07 | en

Whose Home on the Range?

Catron County, New Mexico -- the 'toughest county in the West' -- has been at the center of a struggle between ranchers, loggers, environmentalists, and the U.S. Forest Service over the management of federal land. The only physician in the county, concerned about the health of his community, began a process of dialogue among citizens. This is a story of how health was used as a catalyst to make peace.

2000-03-01 | en

An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power

A decade after An Inconvenient Truth brought climate change into the heart of popular culture comes the riveting and rousing follow-up that shows just how close we are to a real energy revolution. Vice President Al Gore continues his tireless fight, traveling around the world training an army of climate champions and influencing international climate policy. Cameras follow him behind the scenes—in moments private and public, funny and poignant—as he pursues the empowering notion that while the stakes have never been higher, the perils of climate change can be overcome with human ingenuity and passion.

2017-07-28 | en

Go Further

"Go Further" explores the idea that the single individual is the key to large-scale transformational change. The film follows actor Woody Harrelson as he takes a small group of friends on a bio-fueled bus-ride down the Pacific Coast Highway. Their goal? To show the people they encounter that there are viable alternatives.

2003-03-07 | en

Mountain Born: The Jean Ritchie Story

Chronicles the 50-year career of singer/songwriter Jean Ritchie, from Viper, Kentucky to the New York stage. Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie, and her family and friends in Eastern Kentucky are among those interviewed. A 1996 KET production.

1996-09-26 | en

Der lange Abschied von der Kohle

2017-09-26 | de

Harlan County U.S.A.

This film documents the coal miners' strike against the Brookside Mine of the Eastover Mining Company in Harlan County, Kentucky in June, 1973. Eastovers refusal to sign a contract (when the miners joined with the United Mine Workers of America) led to the strike, which lasted more than a year and included violent battles between gun-toting company thugs/scabs and the picketing miners and their supportive women-folk. Director Barbara Kopple puts the strike into perspective by giving us some background on the historical plight of the miners and some history of the UMWA. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in partnership with New York Women in Film & Television in 2004.

1977-01-23 | en